Celebrating Veterans Day with Three IT Pro Stories

by Matthew Stern | Nov 08, 2016

Veterans Day Social_RevisedIn honor of Veterans Day we’re revisiting the stories of some of the proud veterans we’ve featured in the past who, with a combination of the hands-on tech experiences they received in the military and the verification of their skills their CompTIA certifications gave them, have found great career success in their chosen areas of IT.

Andrew Donga

While in the Navy, Andrew Donga began working on radars and other technology that provides the foundations of contemporary networked communications – tech that’s critical in the service, but less frequently found in civilian enterprises. He took his G.I. Bill to New Horizons to get his CompTIA certifications, and as he’s embarked on a successful career as a network engineer, he keeps returning for more training – and more CompTIA certs.  

Ralph Lazaro

Working as a Department of Defense contractor at San Diego military base Camp Pendleton, Ralph Lazaro spends his days monitoring networks for cybersecurity incidents, keeping an eye out for the most commonplace infractions of network security – and staying ever vigilant for the bigger threats to which they can lead. In his 11 years in the U.S. Navy, he got a great deal of varied tech experience. When he got out of the service, he got a career boost from training center New Horizons, who with CompTIA certifications helped him confirm those skills in the eyes of civilian employers.

Jacob Brady

U.S. Marine Corp veteran Jacob Brady liked computers when he started in the service, but was no IT aficionado. He quickly discovered he had a knack for technology, and because he was working on cybersecure systems, he had to get his CompTIA certifications. So began his inspiring career climb from the helpdesk level to where he is now; architecting, implementing and securing high-level networking monitoring solutions. And at every new rung of the professional ladder, he’s pursued a new CompTIA certification.


Matthew Stern is a freelance writer based in Chicago who covers information technology, retail and various other topics and industries.

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