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Holly Vega poses with her husband, Major Javier Vega, TECOM, and their three children during a family outing. Holly, a Marine Corps spouse for 18 years, was voted as the 2017 Marine Corps Base Quantico Spouse of the Year, an honor bestowed upon her by Military Spouse magazine, which holds an annual contest to choose the Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year.

Photo by Photo provided by Holly Vega

Spouse of the Year dedicates her time and experience to helping others

23 Mar 2017 | Valerie O'Berry/Editor Marine Corps Base Quantico

Holly Vega, a Marine Corps spouse for 18 years, was voted as the 2017 Marine Corps Base Quantico Spouse of the Year, an honor bestowed upon her by Military Spouse magazine, which holds an annual contest to choose the Armed Forces Insurance Military Spouse of the Year.  The contest, whose nominees are voted on by military spouses as well as anyone else who is interested in helping choose the most outstanding spouse among the military services, has three tiers of awards:  the base level, branch of service level as well as the national award from which one representative from the Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, Army and National Guard compete for the all around award.

Anyone can nominate a spouse for the award.  Vega was nominated by fellow Marine spouse Candice Curry, who said in her nomination that “She is such an inspiration.  She is so full of energy and positive.  She served relentlessly as president of the Quantico Officers Spouses Organization last year to make sure that there was scholarship money for military children.  She doesn’t just call herself a leader, but she leads by example.”

Vega volunteers in many capacities, both for the Marine Corps and in her community.  Some of her favorite areas to volunteer in are helping raise awareness of heart disease among military spouses and her work as a family readiness volunteer, where she assists families by helping them understand the challenges of military life.

She says that she learned about the uniqueness of the military lifestyle through the L.I.N.K.S. program.  L.I.N.K.S. stands for Lifestyle, Insight, Networking, Knowledge and Skills.  As a new spouse, Vega used the resources of the program to understand the Marine Corps culture and regulations.

“I realized then that it was a way of life not just a job and I gained an understanding of why my Marine was committed and so loyal to this organization,” she said.  Furthermore, she was able to be in a group setting with other spouses who were experiencing the same things.

“I remember those first few months of feeling lost and wanting to have a better understanding of the organization,” she said.  After 18 years of experience with the Marine Corps, she now uses her understanding of the Marine Corps to help other new spouses who also may be feeling a little lost. 

Also through L.I.N.K.S. she began incorporating heart health awareness into discussion groups, which lead to her becoming a Heart Health Awareness Advocate. 

“I was able to help host a successful Red Heart Health Gala for military spouses.  Because of this event, many military spouses walked away with the knowledge and resources to continue the fight against heart disease.  Unfortunately, there are many spouses who suffer from heart disease.  My primary message is ‘You are not alone!”’  One of her goals is to create a support network for victims of heart disease.

Vega feels that one of the most important issues facing military families is family readiness.  
“I’m sure many of you have heard how important it is to be ready.  Ready for deployments, ready to move without much notice, ready to acclimate to a new location and a new job, for example,” Vega said.  “For military spouse the words we live by are ‘Always Ready.’”  This task, she says, is becoming increasingly more difficult as resources for programs continue to dwindle but the need remains the same.  However, she is continually amazed at military spouses’ resilience and zeal for life.

“I have seen over the past 18 years the Marine Corps doing great things with a very limited budget while providing resources to military families,” she said.

Of course, there are great things that come from living the military lifestyle. 

“I have friends all around the world, something that is not as common in a civilian community.  Without a doubt, my ‘military spouse’s career’ allowed me to learn about many different cultures.  Also, it has allowed me to travel and experience things that otherwise would be out of my reach.”

When asked “Why do you volunteer,” Vega’s answer is simple.  “I feel a lot of satisfaction in helping others.”


Marine Corps Base Quantico