Recruit Moya was two days shy of graduating Marine Corps Recruit Training when the unthinkable happened. The United States suffered an attack of proportions that shadowed tragedies of the past and thrusted her people into a conflict that would prove to be Bruno's ultimate test. Bruno realized in those moments that he wasn't just about to serve his country, he was about to serve FOR his country

This #YearOfTheVet conversation introduces Bruno Moya. A Student Veterans of America hype-man, but more importantly a Marine Corps Veteran who now serves as Regional Representative for U.S. Senator Dean Heller.

Named after Giordano Bruno, Moya was challenged by his father at an early age to fuel his curiosity and to challenge the norm. Destined to become a philosopher by fate, Bruno found himself revisiting these values as he served in the Middle East, ultimately leading him down a path towards Capitol Hill

This path was no Yellow Brick Road.

Coming from a family that were no strangers to putting on a uniform , Bruno’s Marine Corps career started at the school of infantry days after 9/11, fought with 1st MARDIV Fox 223 Marines, and then that life came full circle as he was asked to be a platoon Sgt. at MCT teaching new Marines the skills that they would need to know to survive in the sandbox. And literally from one week to the next, Bruno found himself educating Marines on modern warfare, to valeting cars at Treasure Island in Las Vegas.

Have you ever heard the phrase, life changes in one single moment?

Bruno had that moment.

Bruno is such a stand up guy, that even talking about a man he loathes, he shows respect by calling him a gentleman. In the toughest moment in his life as a veteran, he found wisdom… and that wisdom led to a road of changing policy on Capital Hill.

There’s SO many gems in this conversation between Bruno and I, and I often let him know it as I was editing this episode and scrubbing it for the show notes. Wisdom from both he AND his father such as, “Quien se Enoja Pierde - Whoever gets mad loses,” which is a saying that drives his daily interactions with difficult people... and “Once you learn how to fail, you learn how to live,” which is a saying that drives his daily curiosity.