By Meaghan Cox
There is always tomorrow. These words made an impact on the life of Northrop Grumman employee Michael Streeter.
“There is no quit,” Michael said. “And even though it took me 11 years, things do eventually work out.”
Michael wanted to be in the military his entire life. He decided to pause his academic pursuits after two years at Norwich University in Northfield, Vermont, and pursue a career in the service. He joined the 2nd/75th Ranger Regiment.
However, his time with the Rangers was short lived due to multiple injuries. He spent another three years with the U.S. Army before transitioning to civilian life – something he felt unprepared for, he said.
“I had chronic body pain from my injuries, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and I felt I was not good enough,” Michael said. “I felt abandoned.”
With no college degree and excruciating pain, Michael needed help and support. He found this in two things. Yoga, and a career at Northrop Grumman.
In 2012, Michael met Dr. Friedman at the Charleston Veterans Affairs (VA). The doctor encouraged him to get involved with Ashtanga Yoga at the Jiva Yoga Center in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Practicing yoga five times a day, Michael began to lose weight and he found a new community of caring people.
“The practice taught me how to breathe and learn how to use my breath,” he said. “It affected my mind and emotions in a way that is unexplainable, I just knew I had to think things through and not emotionally react.”
He learned to face his challenges and the battles in his head by thinking through the outcomes of situations instead of immediately emotionally reacting to things in his world. “I had to learn and teach my brain, this is not how I think anymore,” Michael said.
With a new sense of self, Michael turned to the next battle in his life. Finding a career. His options were limited without a college degree. Leaning on his newfound mantra of “breath, strength, focus,” he kept searching. Perhaps there would be one where he could connect with the military again.
Northrop Grumman, a company dedicated to defining possible, was in search of someone with Michael’s military background to support its Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS).
IBCS is a multi-domain command and control system that unifies the battlespace to defeat complex threats. It networks all available sensors and shooters, delivering decision-quality fire control data across joint networks, even if a sensor becomes inoperable. The equipment, built in Huntsville, Alabama, is being tested and fielded by the U.S. Army.
And service members need to be trained how to use IBCS.
“I will be training soldiers on a system that will change the battlefield in the future,” Michael said. “The fact I get to be a part of something so big and so groundbreaking is legendary.”
Michael describes IBCS like a net in the sky to protect all assets on the battlefield and personnel on the ground.
April 24, 2023, is the day Michael began working for Northrop Grumman and became part of the IBCS team.
“It has given me purpose and made me feel valued again,” he said. When he read the job description, and went through the interview process he said he thought he was perfect for the role, but was nervous about not having a degree.
He approaches training the same way he did in the military by making it fun, informative and maintaining a presence in the room. His yoga teachings have also influenced his training style.
“I am able to be more present and mindful,” Michael said. “I understand everyone is different and learns in different ways.”
