Soldier's journey from refugee to pilot goes full circle
By Sgt. Jaccob Hearn, 131st Mobile Public Affairs DetachmentMay 26, 2021
FARKE AIRFIELD, Albania – If there is someone who knows about hard work and determination, it's 2nd Lt. Valdeta Mehanja, a pilot with the 1-131st Aviation Regiment. Mehanja is an Albanian native born in Kosovo and a U.S. citizen; she never thought she would get to see Albania.
"I have never visited Albania before. It's an incredible feeling to be here, as a pilot, in uniform and in the U.S. military," she said. "I would have never gotten this opportunity to fly around Albania if it wasn't for the military. To be able to experience this just made me so happy."
Mehanja says this mission feels like "completing a circle." She grew up poor and her family became refugees of war, leaving behind what little they owned to survive violent conflict. Years later, as a contractor for the Department of Defense, her convoy traveling to Bagdad was ambushed by improvised explosive devices and gunfire.
https://www.army.mil/article/246833/soldiers_journey_from_refugee_to_pilot_goes_full_circle
