2008 Distinguished Alumna

Tara Jones ‘95

In 1999, Tara graduated magna cum laude from Marquette University with a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing. She was then commissioned a 2^nd Lieutenant in the United States Air Force. For eight years, Tara served as a pilot. During that time, she was responsible for a multi-million dollar aircraft, passengers, cargo, and a crew of six. Tara was deployed to the Middle East four times in support of the War on Terrorism and flew over eighty combat missions. She earned four Combat Air Medals, as well as numerous other Air Force recognitions.

In 2007, Tara left the Air Force to pursue her nursing goals. She is currently working as a Registered Nurse, while she earns her Master’s of Science degree in Nursing.
Upon graduation, Tara has plans to counsel veterans.

Below is the transcript of the Tara's speech from Reunion Weekend.

"Be who you are and be that well to serve the Master Craftsman whose handiwork we are."

Are you thinking, those are strong words, but what could it possibly mean to me? Or, you don’t know what you want to do with your life? Join the club. When I graduated from Vis in 1995, I had no clue. I knew college was expected of me, but where I wanted to go with that was a mystery. Luckily I had the guiding light in the beacon of my Mother who in her infinite wisdom said, just get a degree, it doesn’t matter what the paper says. So, not knowing where I wanted to go, I let fate aka divine intervention take hold. I earned an ROTC scholarship in nursing, and I liked the idea of caring for people so decided I would start somewhere in health care. Marquette offered me extra scholarship money above my ROTC scholarship to attend their school, and it was not too far from home, so there I went. All through college I did not know if I belonged where I was. I began my college experience shy and homesick. I guess in hindsight this is how many college students feel. I studied hard to get good grades as I thought this is what I had to do.

Upon graduation I thought okay, what next? Well, the Air Force told me where to go, so I followed. I was given the amazing opportunity to become a pilot and so I took it. Meanwhile thinking, okay I am supposed to be who I am and be that well, but I do not know who I am. So I followed the path that was in front of me. Pilot training was a trying time, but again I studied and was successful in earning my wings. Armed with these wings I thought, oh I must be a pilot, I will be that well. So I did all that my bio says I did. I upgraded to Aircraft commander in command of that crew of 6 people, passengers, and a multi million dollar aircraft. I flew in combat many times, I was awarded air medals and was promoted to Captain. In the eyes of the Air Force, and all those looking at me from the outside, I was an amazing success. By the way, if you want to hear about my “war stories” I would be happy to endulge you after this speech, as that is not where I think I have shown my greatest accomplishments. Because, through all of these seemingly amazing accomplishments, I still did not feel content. There was something deep inside of me longing to be discovered. In God’s infinite wisdom, I would be one of the lucky ones who reveals this inner self, but only through some sort of trial and suffering.

In the familiar words of Saint Francis de Sales: "Do not look forward to what might happen tomorrow; the same Everlasting Father who cares for you today, will take care of you tomorrow and every day. Either He will shield you from suffering or He will give you unfailing strength to bear it. Be at peace, then, and put aside all anxious thoughts and imaginations." If only I could have lived this philosophy the last 13 years. Yet, underlying all I did, these words supported me through many tough times. So often through my life I lived in fear. I think often many of us let fear decide where we go and what we do instead of believing what St Francis tells us, that God will take care of us. If I can give one piece of knowledge to the students and fellow alumnae from my life, it would be believe in this statement and don’t live in fear. Luckily my fear of failure propelled me to do what I have done in my life, but underlying it was always some anxiety and I was not able to enjoy the successes I had. For example, I graduated from Vis and was afraid to go to college. I graduated from Marquette, and was afraid to go into the Air Force. I graduated from Pilot training and was afraid to be a pilot. I successfully served as a co-pilot and was afraid to be an Aircraft Commander. All of this fear eventually had its toll on my psyche and I encountered an even more fearful time and place of depression.

Some people may be afraid to admit such a notion. Psychiatric disorders have a negative stigma in our society, but I believe they should be faced as any illness is, not as a flaw in character, or weakness of mind, but an illness that needs treatment and understanding. In my case, this depression was the cross I needed to bear to discover where my life was supposed to go. I faced a world that was dark and more frightening than any place I had been in my life. It is this time, however, that I recognize led me to a new found place of contentment. Hence comes lesson number two of my life, we must go through tough times to appreciate the simple wonderful pleasures of life.

So often people say they do not understand why bad things happen to good people. Well, it is all in how we look at these “bad things”. At the time I could not see any meaning in my depression. I did not see myself as a successful person, and did not see the wonderful Tara that others saw in me. I went through a year of angst and negativity that seemed hopeless. There were days I did not want to get out of bed and could not stop the racing thoughts in my head. It was through this time however, that I let go any control I thought I had over my life and let God care for me. It was with the help of my amazingly supportive family and friends that I trudged through each day. I also found an amazing counselor in the Air Force that told me I was a textbook case of Generalized Anxiety Disorder and moderate depression. He promised me that I could be healthy again and that I had nothing to be ashamed of in my illness. The macho persona I had lived as an Air Force Pilot had to be put on a shelf and I had to let someone tell me to let go of flying and take care of myself. Modern medicine straightened out my serotonin levels, and in several weeks of treatment I could see glimmers of Tara return. Not just the fearful Tara of the past, but a Tara with a new hope who was determined to put fear in its place.

Ironically enough, this year of 2008, Visitation honors St Jane de Chantal. St Jane de Chantal went through trials in her life as well. After all, here is a woman who in her 69 years of life mourned the deaths of her husband and three of her five children who survived infancy; and suffered the heartaches of a wayward son and an acrimonious father-in-law. “God, who had great designs for her, had prepared her through all these events to become the collaborator with Francis de Sales in the foundation of the Visitation.” I think too often in today’s society, we think we need to have everything handed to us, and want instant gratification. Instead it is my proposal that we need to go through some extent of heartache and trials to truly appreciate what we accomplish and do in life. Even in Visitation’s name alone, from the visitation of Mary to Elizabeth we see yet another strong woman encountering a tough life she had not planned to live, yet Mary put confidence in the lord and became the mother of Jesus. Now I do not intend to put myself on the level of St Jane de Chantal and Mary, but I think it is important to recognize how Visitation School sets each and every graduate up to succeed by having strong women underlie all aspects of the school so we can truly experience Vis, “Not for school, but for life.”

So what is next for me? Well, I am pursuing my masters in nursing to become a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner so I can counsel veterans. Would this idea of working with wounded minds and wounded warriors have come to me if I had not trustingly followed the Air Force path set in front of me, or suffered through my depression days, or as I refer to it, the year of the funk? I propose no. I think God in his/her crafty ways felt I needed to trudge the happy path of destiny. I no longer live in fear, and it is great. I finally look forward to each day and what challenges lie ahead of me. Okay, I guess there is a slight fear that the depression may return, but if it does then God has another lesson I must learn and perhaps I got sidelined along the way and need to be brought back to the path I am supposed to pursue. Our society values prestige, titles, money, and those are great, I have experienced them, but my life has shown that it is the moments of sitting comforting a patient in pain or watching a sunrise with someone you love that really matter.

I must now thank those who were constantly present for me through all of my “crazy” days. I would have never made it through my darkest hours without my Mom, Dad, and brother. I can only imagine what it must be like to see someone you love go through what I went through. Sure it was tough from the inside, but they truly went through each moment with me. I would call home crying from college, pilot training, deployments, and those days I did not want to get out of bed and did not know why. Somehow these amazing people I was blessed with to have as my parents managed to say the right words to make me believe everything was going to be okay. As my dad would always say…”It is what it is” I am thankful also for the Visitation Sisters. First in my memories of Vis is Sr Katherine leading me by the hand to take my entrance exam, and encouraging me once a student to be a Portress. From being a Portress I had the priceless opportunity to get to know all of the sisters. I know their prayers were carrying me each step of the way. As sad as I was the day I found out Sr Immaculatta passed away, today I know she is my guardian angel flying over my shoulder keeping me on track. I am so thankful for this honor of being the 2008 Visitation Distinguished Alumnae and the ability to thank each of these people who have made my life so meaningful.

Thank You.