SAN ANTONIO – Brig. Gen. Laura Lenderman always knew she wanted a life in the military, after all, her father was in the Air Force and she grew up moving from base to base across the country.
"This is the only life I've ever known," Lenderman said.
After many years of hard work and training, she is now in command of the largest joint base in the Department of Defense.
"I'm basically the equivalency of a mayor for Randolph, Lackland and Fort Sam Houston," Lenderman said.
As the commander for Joint Base San Antonio, she is in charge of more than 80,000 full-time personnel and responsible for their safety.
While her job comes with a lot of responsibility, she manages to still balance a personal life with her husband, a fellow Air Force officer.
For the next two years, leading Joint Base San Antonio is her assignment and she is making sure everyone, not only women, knows about all the opportunities a life in the military offers.
"I just want to encourage men and women who see an opportunity to take it, and to do everything they can to reach out for help when they need it, because there's people like myself that want to help," Lenderman said.
Just for some prespective as to how much Lenderman has accomplished, she has three different master of science degrees, has more than 3,000 flight hours and has won eight different medals including a Bronze Star.