South Dakota native travels world in Air Force

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Marissa Tucker
  • 4th Fighter WIng Public Affairs
SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  Some people's journeys never lead them out of their hometown and others' lead them around the world.

Senior Airman Daysha Sessions, 4th Force Support Squadron, from Colome, S.D. decided she would be one of the others. Her ambition, strong will, and a desire to explore the world led her out of Colome and into the U.S. Air Force. She now works as a services journeyman, where her duties range from working in lodging to being a cook at any base around the world.

You can find Senior Airman Sessions, working at the Southern Pine Inn here most days assisting military and civilians in a comfortable stay here.

The former Daysha DeMers decision to join the military did not shock her parents, who work on a farm, she said. She had always wanted to see and do more, but she didn't know exactly what.

She worked at a hardware store and as a babysitter while she attended Colome High School, but she knew she wanted something more. After weighing her options, she joined the Air Force. After all, she did have a legacy of sorts in the military. Her grandfather, Abraham Shedeed and uncle George Shedeed had served in the Air Force, so becoming an Airman just felt right, she said.

After graduating high school in 2005, she left South Dakota for the first time and went to Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, where she attended basic training living . She said it was a very different experience, but she learned a lot about people along the way. The hardest part was getting everyone to work together.

After graduating from basic training and technical school, she was stationed at Andersen Air Force Base on the island of Guam, more than 8,000 miles away from her home in Colome.

"Coming from a small town, when I was growing up, I never imagined I would even leave the state," she said.

Being in a new place can be lonely, but Airman Sessions adapted, made friends and also gained a husband along the way. She and her husband, Staff Sgt. Kevin Sessions married Nov. 11, 2006.

While on Guam for two years, Airman Sessions had many memorable moments, one of them being Christmas 2006. After growing up in South Dakota's frigid winters, Guam's 80 degree Christmas was a bit of a different experience, she said.

"That Christmas, we all went to the beach and made sand angels," she said. "I wouldn't trade those memories for anything."

Upon leaving Guam, Airman Sessions found that it was hard to say goodbye, one of some of the lessons she has learned while in the Air Force.

"I've had my ups and downs, but the downs were lessons learned and the ups were life changing experiences that couldn't have happened without the Air Force," she said.

Now, Airman Sessions is stationed here and works in lodging where they house distinguished visitors, Airmen, and families of servicemembers. She will possibly add another country to her travel list in September with a deployment.

Airman Sessions and her husband plan to travel the word before settling down and having children. She wants to get as much out of her Air Force experience as she can, she said.

"Italy, Greece, Japan, just about any place with a different culture is where we want to go."