KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A multi-branch veteran blown up by an enemy mine and who endured the loss of fellow troops now devotes every day to ensuring current and former members of the military receive the benefits they are due.
“The most rewarding part is, first of all, just helping people…and continuing to help in my country,” Bill Moland, who serves as a Federal Contractor for the National Guard Bureau in the role of Reserve Component Transitional Assistant Advisor, said.
The title is complicated but the mission is simple.
“We’re the one-stop of all benefits,” he said.
Moland also served as a combat K-9 handler who used to guide fellow troops to safety on the battlefield. He now helps them access life-changing benefits including health, education, legal, employment, retirement and more.
“I’ll talk to veterans who say, ‘I didn’t know I could get that,’ well, now you do, give me a call,” Moland said.
He works in his home office in a special chair, which is meant to ease the pain of back injuries he suffered in uniform and in contract security work overseas.
“I watched my dog pass away where they (had to) euthanize him next to me in the hospital bed, that was a hard time,” he said.
His beloved partner and bomb detection dog, Max, suffered fatal injuries when an enemy mine exploded.
The K-9 handler worked with a handful of dogs but kept Max’s harness on a shelf in his office, along with his toy “Kong” sealed in a bag with dirt from Afghanistan where the two parted ways as a constant reminder of his old friend.
“I was hoping to take him home (adopt him) because he was such a great dog,” Moland said.
Going on three years into his new role of helping veterans like himself work through the costs of war, re-enter the civilian world and realize benefit options they never knew existed, Moland said he’s still serving his country, just in a different way.
“I do because you never know how you can help somebody until they ask…that’s what I’m here for.”
To reach Bill directly, you can contact him at his work number (202)-987-3545 or email him at wmoland.ctr@gapsi.com.
In addition to our on-camera interview about his current role, Bill Moland took time to answer the following 10 questions about his military service and its influence on his life.
Service & Sacrifice: 10 Questions
1. What one person influenced you most in life?
"As I was growing up, it was my father. He was in the Air Force, working on KC-135 refueler aircraft. We traveled the world, living in Turkey, Hawaii, and many other locations. He served with pride, and it showed in our day-to-day life. I also wanted to be in the military when I grew up."
2. Do you feel honored and respected for serving your country?
"I feel respected by everyone for my service. Especially here in East Tennessee."
3. How can people thank you for your service?
"I do not feel that I need to be thanked for my service. I appreciate it when I am, but it is hard to properly respond to their gratitude towards my service. I usually respond by saying, 'Thank you for your support.'"
4. How do you honor your fellow servicemen and women?
"I make sure that I reflect on those I served with. I think about the people who I served with who did not get to come home. I also continue with what I do for a living. I am a federal contractor for the National Guard Bureau. I brief the Guard and Reserve units about their benefits and assist them in getting them to the right place. I also reach out to my fellow veterans and do the same for them. After all, they do not go to unit briefs anymore. So, who will update them about the newest benefits and regulations? I am glad I get to do that for them."
5. How do you think this generation of military men and women is different or similar to yours?
"I originally joined the Air Force in 1993, the Army Reserve in 1998, and the Navy in 2001. There are obvious generational differences. But there are more similarities than there are differences. Mostly, the similarities would be the service to your country and the excitement about traveling."
6. What influence did your military service have on the rest of your life?
"I grew up in a military family. I thought my childhood was a bit strict because of it. When I had completed my military time, I noticed that I was more organized, more accepting of other cultures, and more willing to try new things. It made me more of an extroverted person who is usually the guy trying to talk to you on the elevator because the silence is awkward."
7. Does your family have a history of military service?
"My dad was in the military, U.S. Air Force, and retired six months before I entered the Air Force. He deployed to Kuwait and was in the first Gulf War."
8. Would you encourage younger generations in your family to join the service?
"I would suggest the military to anyone and everyone. I think the military can organize your life in a way no one else can. It can also help you be more accepting of everyone else because, in the military, you live side by side with people from all backgrounds and locations."
9. How has your opinion of war changed?
"I have spent a lot of time deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq, both in the military and as a private contractor. I went over there as a K-9 handler with an explosive detection K-9. My time there was hard because I did not know anyone to whom I was assigned. K-9 teams are checked out by units to go on missions, just like medics and engineers. I felt alone because I joined units that all knew and worked together. The only thing that helped me was the dog I had with me. As a K-9 handler searching for explosives, we would be in the front when on foot patrols, followed closely by engineers. Being shot at is a feeling that you never forget. Shooting a real gun with real ammunition toward another human being is against everything you have ever learned about. I cannot explain it all in a short blurb, but it took time to feel normal after coming home. And by normal, I mean the new normal because you are never who you were before you left. You are the new you, better in some ways and a little less in others. So, to answer the question, war is an awful experience for anyone. I think war is never the right option, and it should be used only as a last resort."
10. How did your military experience shape your religious faith?
"I have been a Christian my entire life. I was born again as a teenager when I started taking my religion seriously. After all the military and contractor deployments, loss of friends, losing my dog to an IED, and being injured myself, I had a lot of inward thoughts. Ultimately, I learned that forgiveness for everyone goes a long way for your health. My wife and I have been attending First Baptist Concord Church in Farragut online for over a year. We have yet to go in person due to our work schedules and both being in graduate programs full-time, but we intend to soon. Pastor John Mark has excellent sermons with wonderful messages that we truly feel. Prayer and forgiveness go a long way."