Merissa Tucker

Professor Burgin

ENG 101

April 25, 2022

Civilian to Chaplain: Road to Success

In Memphis, Tennessee there was a boy who dreamt of moving out of his hometown and

becoming a successful entrepreneur. This dream came close to shattering multiple times due to

uncontrolled circumstances, however, resiliency brought him through it all. Who would have

thought that a shy boy from a low-class family would rise to become a key member in the

military while successfully owning multiple properties? These dreams started at a young age for

Brandon Stewart. Growing up with very little, made him appreciate all that he has worked so

hard to accomplish as a civilian, military member, and entrepreneur. Continuously striving for

the best, he found a perfect balance despite the many obstacles that he may face.

In 2019, the United States Air Force welcomed one of their newest officers. Brandon was

able to commission as a chaplain,

which was a major milestone for him.

He had worked his entire life to get to

this point. When asked how has

becoming a chaplain positively

impacted his life, he paused for a

second before responding “This

Figure 1: A picture of Chaplain Stewart and fellow team members.
journey has been amazing. The

people, the challenges and just knowing that helping others is my job makes everything
worth it” (B. Stewart, personal communication, April 17, 2021). It is not very common to find

that someone loves their job so much, but Brandon enjoys every bit of it. In fact, he loves it so

much that he has already decided that he will continue to minister whenever his military term

ends. That is true passion for what he does.

So, who was Brandon Stewart as a child? Well, he was known as the witty child with the

big aspirations. In fact, he recalls some locals from his hometown stating, “One thing about

Brandon, he always has big dreams” (B. Stewart, personal communication, April 17, 2021).

They were big dreams indeed when factoring the struggles within his family life. Living in a

low-class neighborhood, filled with crime and poverty while being raised by a single mother

whom he barely even saw was difficult for him. This pushed him to take advantage of the

resources outside of his community like joining the Young Men’s Christian Association or

YMCA for short. This was the positive environment that started to help him shape his future in

ways he could not have imagined.

His teenage years were more positive and structured—something his childhood years

lacked. These years were vital for

Brandon and further molded him into

who he is today. This was when he first

realized that he wanted to go to college

but was unsure what exactly he wanted

to study. Brandon (personal

Figure 2: A picture of Chaplain Stewart.
communication, April 17, 2021) states, “Constantly being surrounded by bad people and bad

energy can really dim your light if you let it, but not me. I wanted to be that light for people

in a sense and that is why I eventually chose to pursue a degree in religious studies in hopes
of one day becoming a chaplain in the military” (Figure 2). Having this mindset at such a

young age further shows the type of person that he is.

As a chaplain, he intends on helping others by developing organizations that help those in

need (Figure 3). When asked if he had the

opportunity to change one thing, what would that

be, his response was “If I knew then what I

know now, I would have started my

organization to help those who are in need. I

Figure 2: A picture from a giveaway event that
Chaplain Stewart coordinated.
understand the struggle of growing up in

poverty and I want to help. I want people to see that I turned out better than everything

that I went through and for them to know that they can do the same” (B. Stewart, personal

communication, April 17, 2021). He strongly believes that all it takes is for one person to do

something small that could make a big change. This drives him to continue doing all that he is

doing to not only make a difference, but in

hopes of inspiring those that he mentors as

well as others to want to do the same (Figure

4). He recalls going back to visit his

hometown and seeing the younger generation

following a dangerous path with no positive

guidance. He believes that there are not

Figure 1: A picture of Chaplain Stewart and some 3 of his mentees.
enough resources available, and he intends on

changing this.
 With his everyday duties as a chaplain keeping him constantly busy, it can be hard to

focus on his other interests. Exploring other business ventures was Brandon’s way of improving

as an individual. He started looking into buying property and renting them on Airbnb as another

line of income. Initially he faced challenges and he even found himself having to pay thousands

in property damages and fees. However, he believed that the outcome would be far greater and

decided to purchase other properties. When I asked him about his concerns with these ventures,

he simply replied “I have faith that God will take the lead and I will continue to see more

positive outcomes” ” (B. Stewart, personal communication, April 17, 2021). This is a man who

puts his trust in his faith more than anything else. He does not let the unknown deter him and he

continues to have this outlook in everything that he does.

Chaplain Stewart’s hard work has made those around him, especially those who watched

him grow up, extremely proud. His achievements as a civilian, military member, and

entrepreneur has put him in a position that he has dreamt of as a child. Now he is eager to help

others who came from the same upbringing to do the same. He believes that his work is never

truly done and that his sole purpose in life is to help others. While doing this, he is also

determined to improve as an individual so that he is able to motivate others around him to do the

same. Everyone can see that he truly loves what he does. This is evident through his selfless acts

and his positive attitude when it comes to dealing with everyday tasks and challenges. His

journey to success is not yet over, but Chaplain Stewart is well on his way.