By MaryBeth Matzek | Photography by Hillary Schave
Kerry McAllen learned the importance of being self-reliant and persistent during her time serving with the U.S. Army, the Wisconsin National Guard and the U.S. Army Reserves.
“I learned a lot about leadership and how when you’re overseas, you’re fighting for the person to left and the person to the right of you. It doesn’t matter who you are — you’re all working toward the same goal,” says McAllen, who retired in 2020 with the rank of command sergeant major after 31 years of service.
When she was a senior in high school, McAllen was home sick one day when an Army recruiter called. Her father had served in the National Guard and she was intrigued about the military — so she decided to enlist. She served three years of active duty as a mechanic in Germany.
After returning to the United States, she joined the Wisconsin Army National Guard where she served another 10 years as a track and wheeled vehicle repairer, and an automated logistical specialist. McAllen served two tours of foreign combat duty — first in Kuwait and later in Iraq.
“Your world gets very small when you’re overseas. The military exposed me to a lot of diversity, and I learned to better understand the people around me,” says McAllen, who was named the 2023 Woman Veteran of the Year by the Wisconsin Department of Veteran Affairs.
Being a woman in the Army — especially a woman in a leadership position — was not always easy, McAllen says.
“I faced some discrimination, but I always did what I could to win people over,” she says.
It was during her time with the Guard that she also earned her bachelor’s degree and began working with her father’s commercial real estate business, McAllen Properties. She became president and CEO in 2015.
After her first overseas deployment, McAllen joined her local Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) post and is currently an active volunteer and member.
“Serving in the military was a great experience. I think everyone should spend some time in the military to understand what it takes to defend this country,” she says.
