Vance Spouse Spotlight: Laura Rice Published Jan. 21, 2014 By Sarina Houston 3rd Flying Training Squadron key spouse VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- Name: Laura Rice Base affiliation - What does your spouse do? My husband, Capt. Lee Rice, is an undergraduate pilot training student in Class 14-06. He will be flying KC-135s at Pease Air National Guard Base, N.H., upon completing training. Tell us about your family: Lee and I have been together for seven years and will celebrate our three-year wedding anniversary this May. No kids for us yet but we have two dogs, a 7-year-old Schnoodle named Maverick and a 2-year-old Wheaten Terrier named Riley. What's your professional background? I received my bachelor's degree in Marketing with a minor in Economics from Western New England University in Springfield, Mass. One of my favorite experiences during undergrad was my internship at Hasbro. I completed a semester-long research project on the future of the college game market and also got to play a role in their toy-testing "Fun Lab" research sessions. After graduation, I worked as a marketing director at a party rentals company and financial planning firm. As we continued to move ever year or so I decided to pursue my dream of owning my own business and created L Embroidery & Design. My business is centered around embroidery. Some of the things that I've created include baby gifts, children's clothing, burlap garden flags and wall art, wedding and bridal gifts and boutique style accessories such as monogrammed scarves and bags. What I enjoy most about my job is the variety and creativity involved. A majority of my orders are for special occasions such as birthdays, weddings and holidays, which means I have the privilege of being a part of celebrations and special occasions all year long. It's fun for me to be able to use different colors, designs, fonts and fabrics to customize each order and personalize it uniquely for each recipient. Day to day I can be found designing, embroidering and packaging orders. I also enjoy spending time marketing my business and adding new items to my website and Etsy shop. Do you have any hobbies? I love to travel! Do you volunteer? I enjoy volunteering my time whenever an opportunity presents itself in the community. At our last base I volunteered my time and efforts in a "Kindness Raiser" campaign dedicated to promoting the "pay it forward" concept in the community. One of activities I participated in was visiting local nursing homes on the first day of spring to give flowers in celebration of the change of season. I recently had a booth at the library's annual holiday craft and bake sale with my embroidery business. Prior to the event I volunteered my time and marketing knowledge to help the library promote the show in the community. What's your favorite thing about Enid? My favorite thing about Enid definitely has to be the people. The community here has been so welcoming. From the realtor who helped us find our home the day we got here to the person who held the door for me at the store this morning and everyone in between, I have been overwhelmed by the genuine kindness. Challenges you've overcome and/or advice to other spouses: My advice to other spouses is make time in your schedule for what is important to you, especially during PCS moves and periods of time apart from your spouse or family and friends. Whether it's your job, family, a hobby, making new friends or spending time to catch up with old ones, make time to do something you enjoy. I feel like the Air Force can swallow up your whole life at times so it's nice to have these things to keep you from losing yourself in the mix. Sarina is the Key Spouse for the 3rd Flying Training Squadron and is married to Capt. Jacob Houston in 71FTW Safety Office at Vance AFB.