From an early age, I remember being interested in maps and any bird’s eye view image. My father used aerial photography for his analysis as a U.S. Department of Agriculture employee. I still remember going into his office and looking at the pixelated monotone 8.5 by 11-inch Landsat tiles mosaicked on his office wall. I knew that I wanted to combine my creativity and interest in computers with my curiosity and fascination of spatial relationships, satellite imagery, and navigation skills. I was undecided about what to study, but after I had a chance to tour the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Lab at Virginia Tech, I could see myself being content with studying Geography and getting a chance to create maps. With over 20 years of technical GIS experience, I have been a lifelong federal contractor—having worked for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), and the Department of Defense. I love the mix of skills I get to use daily—from brainstorming technical processes and scrubbing attributes to troubleshooting software problems. A GIS career incorporates a variety of skills and experiences: database management, graphic design, basic scripting, and logical analysis. I greatly enjoy any type of layout/spatial relationship, especially when it’s used to build an aesthetically-pleasing and functional design product that will enhance the decision making process.