By Cherie Suonvieri '15, content specialist
October 15, 2020 | 3:30 p.m.
Cynthia Kallberg served as the Minnesota National Guard’s first female Senior Enlisted Advisor, and is the 2020 Alumna of the Year for Bethel's College of Adult & Professional Studies and Graduate School.
“It’s an honor to add to their tool box. The new generation of soldiers has taken the baton, but I still get to build on their leadership, add to their skillsets, and help create servant leaders.”
— Cynthia Kallberg GS’12In her current role, Kallberg continues to have opportunities to connect with women in the military. One day while she was on assignment, she found a young female lieutenant sitting on the restroom floor in tears. The lieutenant explained to Kallberg that she had newborn baby at home and that it was her first drill back. “I was able to sit down next to her and say, ‘Hey, I get it. I’ve been there, and you can get through this,’” Kallberg says.
Over the years, Kallberg has been formally recognized for her accomplishments in a number of ways. In 2009, she was awarded the Bronze Star for her strategic and courageous leadership in Iraq. She was also inducted into the Camp Ripley Court of Honor in 2019. This fall, she was named Alumna of the Year for Bethel’s College of Adult & Professional Studies and Graduate School. But when asked about these accomplishments, Kallberg humbly points back to God, who positioned her to make an impact, and to the people around her, who’ve mentored and supported her throughout her career.
Every day when Kallberg fires up her computer, a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson greets her from her desktop: “The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.”
“I like that,” Kallberg says. “I think you really have to look at the impact you’re having on others. Ask what you’re doing that’s making the biggest difference—and then do more of that.”
Every year, Bethel honors three outstanding alumni. If you know an incredible alum who deserves to be recognized, let us know! Nominations are accepted year-round and remain in consideration for three years.
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