Drive’s Veteran Team Members Share Their Stories

This Veterans Day, Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare is honored to recognize the many Veterans on our team, whose commitment, resilience, and expertise enrich our organization. We asked those team members who have served to share their stories. We hope you are inspired by their responses—and the determination and resilience that shine through as they discuss their journeys from military service to becoming part of Drive. 

A Family Legacy 

Many of our Veteran team members were inspired to serve by family legacies of military dedication.  “My father retired from the Air Force which is the branch I chose to join,” said Michael McDonald, a receiver at our Atlanta-area warehouse and former Air Force Technical Sargeant. “My older brother joined the Marines when he graduated and of my two younger brothers, one went into the army and the other became a firefighter.” 

“I come from a military family,” said Quality Control Technician and former Aerospace and Control Warning Technician, Joey Waggoner, who served in the Air Force as an Air Traffic Controller. “My father served in the US Army. He was enlisted as a tractor trailer support driver. He was also in at the same time as Elvis Presley. In fact, he knew Elvis personally.” 

Drive’s Sr. Analyst in Regulatory Affairs and former Corporal, Jillian Forster, also found her path inspired by family. Witnessing her older brother's boot camp graduation at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego marked a turning point for her when she was just a middle-schooler. “It is truly one of the coolest things I have ever seen, still to this day, so being able to be a part of it, and becoming a Marine several years later was truly an honorable accomplishment and something my brother and I will share forever.”  

For others, joining the military signaled the opportunity to expand their horizons. “At the age of 18, I had no idea of what or who I could be,” shared Distribution Center Supervisor and former Army Command Sergeant Major Lorenzo Lindsey, who was moved by the slogan, Be all you can be.  “I looked at [it as] by joining the Army, it could open my eyes to who I was and fulfill my inquiry as to what was truly inside of me.” 

Senior Vice President, Clinical Affairs and Hospital Corpsman Second Class, Joseph Lewarski, MHA, RRT, FAARC, recalled how facing financial challenges halfway through his second year of college in 1983 led him to consider military service. “The country was in a very severe recession, and the unemployment rate in my community was 10-11%.  The minimum wage was $3.35/hour…if you could find a job.” After speaking with Veterans, who encouraged him to consider joining the military due to the high quality of the training programs, Lewarski enlisted in the Navy to become a Hospital Corpsman and later attended a joint military respiratory therapy school, earning his A.S. degree in respiratory therapy. 

Personal and Professional Lessons 

For many Veterans at Drive, the lessons of military service are woven into their daily lives, bringing a foundation of resilience, discipline, and leadership to their roles. “The Army helped to shape me by enhancing my ability to understand accountability, responsibility, discipline, ownership, and leadership,” says Lorenzo Lindsey. In the Air Force, Andrew Avaritt honed “discipline, respect for authority, chain of command, and the attempt to solve all conflicts at the lowest level.” 

One motto kept Jillian Forster going: “Embrace the suck.” She explains, “One day you will look back at the hard times and always find good from them and learn from them as well. Be patient, be positive, and always have that determination to keep pushing forward—in life and in your profession.” 

The Journey Continues 

At Drive, our Veterans bring not only their skills but also what Territory Business Manager and Petty Officer Chris Reilly calls a “never give up” mentality and a deep respect for teamwork.  

“The military ultimately helped me to better understand that the macro of a mission is only accomplished by consistently developing efficient habits and routines in my daily life,” says Avaritt. 

That teamwork and dedication became crucial as Drive mobilized to support COVID-19 patients. “What clicked for me with Drive was during the pandemic when I saw a group working so hard to get vitally needed supplies to those in need,” recalls McDonald. 

For Joey Waggoner, joining a company with shared values has been profoundly fulfilling. “I am so glad to share my skills I gained in the military with a company that shares the same values as myself. Working here gives me another sense of purpose,” he says. Sgt. Jordan Marsh - Military Intelligence, and Sr. Director, Parts Operation Compliance, feels a similar alignment, sharing how career in medical equipment is likewise “about serving a community in need and providing independence and dignity.” 

In collecting these powerful stories, we’re reminded of the enduring impact that Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare’s mission has on our nation’s Veterans. We are honored to provide a sense of freedom to those who have fought to protect ours by partnering with the VA to provide VA clinicians and Veterans with outstanding medical equipment. From the advanced F-22 Rollator, to the versatile M3 QRT Wheelchair, to the freedom-enhancing iGo®2 Oxygen Concentrator, our products are engineered to bring comfort, reliability, and independence to those who have served our country.  

Each year, this commitment is reaffirmed with in-person volunteering at events like the VA National Wheelchair Games, Heroes on the Hudson, and the National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic.   

At DDH, it’s our privilege to stand with Veterans—today and every day.  

To learn more, visit https://www.drivemedical.com/sales-channel-government-professionals 

Finally, these excerpts are only part of the story—to read our team members’ full responses, click here.