Target is proud to count many veterans and military reservists among our 365,000 team members. In honor of Memorial Day, Target is sharing the stories of a small sample of team members and their families who have served in our nation’s military. Below, these Target team members tell their stories firsthand.
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Robert DeVoe (Military Member)
Financial and Retail Services
Robert playing ‘soldier’ as a kid
My family’s military roots trace back to the American Revolution, so serving in the military was never a question for me. As a kid, I played army in the hills around Fort McCoy Wisconsin where I grew up watching real soldiers train for war. I eventually joined the Army myself, serving in the post-Vietnam war era. Needless to say, it wasn’t very “cool” to serve at a time when the country was burned out on war. But it was still important for me to serve and I did it proudly. Now I have the unique opportunity to make sure our troops are appreciated through Target’s Military Business Council (MBC). The MBC supports our team members in tangible ways that make distinct differences in their lives. It’s another proud time for me to serve our military!
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Linda Morton (Military Supporter)
Target Commercial Interiors
Linda accepting the 2012 Ombudsman of The Year award
I lead a 2011 Military Care Packaging Event with Target. With help from other organizations, we collectively sent 500 care packages to our service members. The most rewarding moment was when I received an email from a soldier stationed in Afghanistan who let me know that he received the care packages. He wrote how the packages lifted the spirits of his unit during the special holiday.
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Lisa McNiesh (Military Spouse)
Target Clinics
Chad and his two kids at his going away ceremony
My husband, Staff Sergeant Chad McNiesh, is a Medic in the Army National Guard. He has been deployed three times in the previous eight years. Just recently he deployed again for another year in Afghanistan from March 2012 to Feb. 2013. He has worked for Target for all three of his deployments. The support that Target provides just keeps getting better and better with each deployment. We even have these great t-shirts that were made that say ‘Team McNiesh.’The team has offered to come and help with several big jobs at my house over the spring and fall—like set up and take down of our 18 foot pool. Hard to do on your own! I couldn’t be more proud that both my husband and I work for a company that supports the military the way that they do.
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Lew Price (Military Parent)
Target Technology Services
Lew and family with his son Devin Price
Our son, Devin Price, just returned home from a deployment from the Middle East. He is part of the 1-194th Amor Battalion, and was based at two different Camps in Kuwait during his deployment. When he was stationed at Camp Virginia he drove an armored Caiman MRAP, escorting caravans in and out of Iraq. Devin’s unit provided the overall security of these caravans, transporting equipment during the drawdown of all U.S. troops, which concluded successfully before Christmas 2011. He personally logged over 10,000 miles over five months on this very important mission. In January 2012, he accepted a temporary assignment at Camp Patriot located on Kuwait Naval Base (KNB), providing Camp security as part of Quick Response Force (QRF).
Before Devin’s deployment, he worked as a logistics team member at the Burnsville, Minn. Target Store. We are so proud of our soldier and glad he’s now home safely—he is our hero.
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Holly Date (Military Parent)
Target Sourcing Services
Holly’s son graduating from boot camp
My husband Tim and I do not have a military background, so when our son Jesse first mentioned that he wanted to join the Army during his senior year of high school, we said “no!” He tried it our way and attended college for a couple years and then came to us again and said he wanted to join. This time, we fully supported his decision. He joined in April and was assigned to the 101st Airborne, Ft. Campbell, Ky.
In August 2010, he deployed to Afghanistan. We were both proud and scared for him. I wanted to find out more about the Army, so I started asking around at work and heard about the Target Military Services Network (now the Military Business Council), which is a network of other parents and service men and women. The network has helped me be part of a better support system for my son. And I feel closer to him by volunteering through our Military Business Council and helping other families of soldiers. By giving a little of my time, I feel like I’m helping to make a difference in our soldiers’ lives.
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Brian Bobo (Military Member)
Target Technology Services
Brian en route to Iraq
My wife and I are both in the National Guard. I have been deployed to the Middle East twice and just returned from a deployment to Kuwait supporting the draw down in Iraq. I have the normal challenges of balancing work and the military along with the deployments, but the added challenge of a spouse who is also a member of the military. With no family living close by it is especially challenging finding childcare when our military schedules overlap. We’ve had excellent support from our Target friends though. Over this past year, team members under David Young formed a volunteer group that brought my wife meals, helped set up our Christmas decorations, and even took care of the kids when we got in a bind. The support has been amazing and we’re so lucky to be a part of this incredible team!
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David Young (Military Supporter)
Target Technology Services
David Skyping with Brian
When Brian Bobo told me of his upcoming deployment and shared the struggles that he and his family would have to endure, it was my time to ‘serve’ and make the commitment to him that we would help in any way possible. As his manager and through the Military Business Council, Target gave me the platform to create Team Bobo. The mission was to stay connected with Brian and his family and to provide creative and meaningful ways to minimize the impact of Brian’s deployment. I am honored to be around such great Target team members and individuals who take the idea of support to a whole new level! I am happy to say that we just celebrated Brian’s return to Target and have extended Team Bobo to Team McNiesh in support of another one of our team members who was recently deployed, Chad McNiesh.
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Eddie Baeb (Military Supporter)
Target Communications
Eddie and his father “flying”
My father, David E. Baeb, was a 30-year career Army officer and aviator—he flew helicopters and served during wartimes twice in Vietnam and once in Korea. I grew up on Army bases. Seeing first-hand the sacrifices that military personnel and their families make is both awesome and humbling. I never appreciated how much this was part of me until joining Target, and having discussions about diversity of experiences and bringing one’s “whole self” to work. That’s why I’m so excited and honored to be part of Target’s Military Business Council, where we will work to harness Target’s talent to better serve and support military members and families.
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Rhonda Shemon (Military Spouse & Parent)
Target Technology Services
Rhonda with her military family
I was actually born in a Navy hospital in Groton, Conn. where my dad was stationed on a Navy submarine. Pride in our country and military was a core value that my parents instilled in me at a young age. Right after high school, my future husband enlisted in the Navy. After a three-year long-distance relationship, we were married. We taught our children to respect our country’s military and to understand the sacrifices that our military members make every day. In middle school, our oldest son Adam stated that he wanted to attend a military academy. Adam attended the U.S. Naval Academy and in 2009, he graduated as a Naval Flight Officer. He is currently stationed at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City. He is a Lieutenant, Junior Grade, on the Navy’s E-6 Mercury, which is the United States Strategic Command’s Airborne Command Post.
The friends I have met through Target’s Military Business Council are a great source of support when our son isn’t home for the holidays, or when the phone calls home about friends killed in the line of duty. We are proud of our son, all the members of our country’s military and especially the families who are left behind!
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Abby Crowder (Military Member & Spouse)
Target Stores
Abby with her husband Randall after his return from Iraq
I oversee several Target stores that have team members affiliated with Ft. Hood, which is the largest Army base in the continental U.S. In addition, my husband and I are graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point. When I began my career at Target, my husband was still in the Army as an officer. In 2007, during my second assignment as an Executive Team Leader in Logisitics, we got news that he would deploy for a second time to Iraq. This deployment was fifteen months long! Since my family is all located in North Carolina, Target became my support system. During his deployment, my District Team Leader, Store Team Leader and peers ensured that I was able to manage the stress of having a deployed spouse. They did this through genuine care and personal connection. Since my store was located close to a base, I had several team members that also had deployed spouses, children and friends. We all really took care of each other, and it solidified my admiration for Target as a company. I am currently a Co-Chair for the Military Business Council and enjoy having the opportunity to “pay it forward” to team members that may have a deployed family member or friend.
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To learn more about Target’s support of the military, visit Target.com/military.
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