Martha Castleton | Grounded in Home, Soaring in Service

Martha Castleton
Hometown: Eureka, Utah
Retired Command Chief, 151 Air Force – Air National Guard

I actually came back to Eureka, Utah, after living away for a few years as a child. My mother accepted a teaching job in Utah and we moved back as a family. I graduated from Tintic High School, went to Snow College, then UVSC (Utah Valley State College) at the time, but college was and continues to be expensive, so I joined the military. I did so with my husband, who I grew up with in Eureka and we were stationed in Fort Hood, Texas.

When I became pregnant with my first child, we came back to Utah and the Air National Guard needed linguists, so my husband  enlisted first, then I joined the admin team after we had our two daughters. During the Global War on Terror, we were gone for a couple months, home for a few, and back and forth. My girls became very independent and while they may have understood that either one of us (my husband and I) was gone, someone would always come back.

I worked my way up and I loved the leadership circles. I loved leading people, not just programs. I ended up becoming a Wing Command Chief, the first female to be in this particular station and rank. Although my parents brought me back to Utah, what keeps me here are quite a few things: family, outdoors, so many perspectives, our public lands, its military friendly environment and how easy it is to get involved

Martha’s Top Places, Spaces, & Things that Help Make Utah Home:

• Lake Powell
  • You don’t need a boat or a trailer, just go to escape.
    
    
• Anywhere in the Mountains
  • Oquirrh Canyon is my current favorite.
    
    
• Zions National Park
  
  
• Hale Centre Theatre or Desert Star Playhouse for entertainment!
  
  
• Keys on Main for live piano!
  
  
• The Utah Symphony