Tech. Sgt. Joshua Rolli and Kaitlyn Rolli understand that when you find the right community, they become an extension of your own family. For the Rollis, their civil engineering family has meant everything to them during their ten years of marriage.
“I consider everybody that I serve alongside an extension of my family. They are my brothers and sisters,” said Joshua.
Not only do the Rollis appreciate their relationships within civil engineering, but they both serve the Air Force in different capacities at Joint Base Andrews, Maryland. Kaitlyn is the Lead Defense Travel Administrator for the 316th Wing, and Joshua is an Airfields Pavements and Construction NCIOC. In addition to her role in finance, Kaitlyn serves as the Key Support Liaison for the 316th Civil Engineer Squadron. Kaitlyn understands the importance of her position because the Key Support Program was pivotal in helping her get acclimated to military life when she first got married.
“Being able to support members and their families, whomever it is they call family, is important to me because you never know what someone might be going through,” Kaitlyn said. “Support is especially crucial when they feel that they have no one to rely on. You get to share important moments together, whether that’s welcoming a new baby, celebrating a marriage or promotion, or just being there during the hard times.”
Kaitlyn is also a Resident Community Council Member at Andrews. Working closely with wing leadership and civil engineering through the military housing office, Kaitlyn connects with the civil engineering community in new ways.
Regarding her position on the council, Kaitlyn said that it has “allowed me to use the knowledge I learned from my husband to identify a sinkhole in the roadway by knowing what the stress fractures meant in the pavement. I use my privatized housing knowledge from Josh’s time in Resources and Optimization, and other things I have learned over the years, to improve overall quality of life and health and safety issues for base residents.”
When Joshua was promoted to Technical Sergeant, Kaitlyn fondly remembers how it felt to share the experience with him. She was invited to be a part of him finding out that he had been promoted when his Chief called a meeting to give him the news while he was deployed.
“It was really special that they made a point to include me in it,” Kaitlyn said. “I have never been included in that type of celebration, and it is even harder when he is gone on deployment. It was so thoughtful that his home leadership team made a point to let him know.
Joshua and Kaitlyn have made many sacrifices as a family, including multiple deployments that have required them to be apart. Through everything, they continue their steadfast commitment to the Air Force mission and recognize the importance of their civil engineering community when going through tough times.
Kaitlyn said that “there is no morale, no culture, that can match civil engineering. When they say that you cannot do what you do without taking care of your family first, they mean it,” she continued. “The mission does not happen without your family.”
The Air Force as a whole has also showed up for the Rolli family during difficult times. When their eldest daughter needed brain surgery, she got to experience being a Thunderbird for a day. Getting to see their daughter’s name on the jet, watching her do the hand signals, and witness the joy she experienced that day is one of the family’s all-time favorite memories.
Joshua and Kaitlyn have truly embraced what it means to be Air Force Civil Engineers. Throughout the years, a quote that has resonated with the couple is, “you never know how you’ll be asked to serve.” After their experiences with civil engineering, they have added a new ending to the quote, “you never know who you’ll have the privilege of serving along with.”
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