WASHINGTON — When the call came for the Georgia National Guard to support DC Safe and Beautiful Sgt. Katlynn Pickle was visiting her grandparents. Within three days, the Georgia National Guard Public Affairs Specialist was on her way to the nation’s capital. Being activated on this mission was what brought Pickle to D.C. for the first time.
"I've been wanting to see the monuments and museums, and now the chance had been given to me," she said.
After her initial rotation in September, she chose to do it all again in the following Spring. "I came back because I loved getting to use my creativity more freely. It’s a beautiful city and there are still lots of things I want to do here,” she said.
Pickle is a creative and artistic person. Her military journey was inspired by her found talent for photography while training to be a chef. At culinary school she was introduced to a culinary photography course that revealed a hidden talent.
While photography became her military craft, her creative roots trace back to a childhood dream.
Since the age of five, Pickle has dreamed of owning a restaurant. Despite skeptics who dismissed her ambition as "silly," she leaned into her passion.
"I tried to follow [other’s] advice for success, but I was miserable. I decided to throw caution to the wind and went to culinary school," Pickle said.
Today, she is actively seeking investors for her own restaurant and plans to launch a YouTube channel to teach others the craft.
“I am blessed in the fact that I am doing something that I enjoy. I want to say that people should do what makes them happy”.
Sgt. Pickle builds her life around her passions. Joining the National Guard has opened her up to a life of new experiences from riding in a UH60 Blackhawk and working with helicopters where she learned to take the “nose shot”, covering soldiers on missions overseas, visiting 7 countries and being the designer of her company’s challenge coin.
Public Affairs plays a vital but often misunderstood role. While residents regularly see Guardsmen patrolling Metro stations and neighborhoods, soldiers carrying cameras isn’t commonly recognized.
"Each day is an opportunity to find a new way to tell a story we’ve all heard before," Pickle explained. "I try to give myself personal challenges with each mission. I find one thing that is really hard to do and then figure out a way to get it done. It has given me some really interesting photos”.
D.C. Safe and Beautiful has given Pickle a better understanding of how public affairs affect the Guard and the public. This mission has more visibility and impact on the external audience as it normally does on the internal.
As a graduate of the Defense Information School (DINFOS), Pickle operates under the philosophy of "maximum disclosure, minimum delay." The D.C. mission has highlighted how critical that transparency is for the public.
"On small training missions, it can be easy to lose sight of the effect we have," she said. "I have had the chance to see firsthand what being the voice of the Guard can actually accomplish."
Pickle also finds fulfillment in the smaller moments, like when tourists ask her to take their photo in front of a monument, or the opportunity to reconnect with old classmates from DINFOS who are also deployed to the city.
Ultimately, her mission is centered on the families of soldiers waiting back home.
"I am hoping to reach the families," Pickle said. "I know they worry for their Guardsmen [...] I want to show them exactly what their loved ones are doing and let them know they are okay."
Her story serves as a reminder to never settle and to always take the chance.
As Pickle states, "Go for the nose shot."