Tyler serves as Financial Analysis Flight chief for the 88th Comptroller Squadron and was recently named Senior NCO of the Year for 2020 during the 88th Air Base Wing’s awards ceremony. The event took place virtually Jan. 19.
Tyler’s job changes every day. Along with her normal flight chief duties, she also took on the role of squadron superintendent in December 2019.
“My day to day is different ... but growing Air Force Airmen is my job,” she said. “One day, I could be providing mentorship to Airmen. Another day, I could be making sure we have the appropriate documents and funding in place to purchase cold-weather gear for junior Airmen and NCOs.”
Tyler is considered the “keystone of the squadron” by Lt. Col. Joshua Wolfram, the 88th Comptroller Squadron commander.
“She is not only a technical expert, but also a leader, mentor and someone who promotes development amongst all the ranks,” he said. “I am proud of the great work of Master Sgt. Tyler and all that she accomplished this year and look forward to the great things to come in the future.”
Winning Senior NCO of the Year proved to Tyler that all it takes is hard work and dedication to get her where she wanted to be. But she says she wouldn’t be where she is today without her team’s backing.
“Winning this award means that all of the hard work I have done throughout the year has paid off,” she said. “In addition to that, it is a win for the girl who entered active duty on Jan. 7, 2003, and did not know how far her career would go or how much these years of opportunities and experiences would mean to her.
“This is my family, no matter how good or bad. ... At the end of the day, this is my family, they are my teammates.”
Her teammates were not at all surprised that Tyler won this award, especially Senior Airman Mariah Villadores, a financial operations technician at 88 CPTS.
“It was well deserved,” Villadores said. “The level of commitment that she has toward the mission, her care for her Airmen and the hard work that she puts into everything she does is definitely worthy of being recognized.”
Villadores credits Tyler with helping her achieve career goals and just being there to motivate her when she needs it.
“Her guidance and mentorship has helped me accomplish my career goals and motivated me to be a great leader to others,” she said. “She is a selfless and servant leader, always looking out for the best interests of her people and motivating those around her.”
Tyler is inspiring and embodies the type of leader she wants to be one day, Villadores added, saying it’s “empowering” to see her supervisor’s hard work pay off by being awarded Senior NCO of the Year.
“Leaders like Master Sgt. Tyler are rare,” Villadores said. “Not often do you come across individuals who can enhance their team’s dynamic the way (she) does.”
Tyler also earned other awards in 2020. She was the Secretary of the Air Force’s Financial Management Senior NCO of the Year and nominated as 88 ABW’s Lance P. Sijan Senior NCO of the Year.
Tyler did not set out to win any awards last year. She said she just wanted to work hard for her Airmen and make sure they got what they needed. She’s also thankful her leadership saw her job efforts, kept encouraging her to push herself and then made sure she was recognized for it.
Now approaching 20 years in the Air Force, the master sergeant believes she is “what people need her to be” as an enlisted leader.
“At this point in my career, my job is to pay it forward, to believe in people when they do not believe in themselves and encourage them like my mentors encouraged me,” she added.
Tyler’s advice to other Airmen pushing to better themselves and their careers?
“Do your job to the best of your ability, and if your ability is not good enough, then grow your ability,” she said.
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