Vance Spouse Spotlight: Jill Helmer Published Sept. 24, 2013 By Sarina Houston 3rd Flying Training Squadron key spouse VANCE AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- Name: Jill Helmer Base affiliation: My husband is Army Staff Sgt. Jeremy Helmer. He's the supply sergeant with Company B, 1/179 Infantry Battalion, 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, Oklahoma Army National Guard, at the Armed Forces Reserve Center here. Do you have kids? Jeremy and I have been married 11 years. We met in the one place my mother insisted I would never meet my husband -- yep, a bar. We have three children together who inherited all of their positive traits from me, of course. We have two ornery but well-meaning boys, Skylar and Gunner and one mini-me, Ava. The family pet is a Boxer name Bo who barks ferociously at everyone who attempts to enjoy the paths through base housing, but is just a big baby. What's your educational background? I have an Associate of Arts degree in Social Sciences from Northern Oklahoma College, a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Northwestern Oklahoma State University and a Master of Counseling Psychology, also from Northwestern Oklahoma State University. Do you work? My everyday job, outside of parenting and being a wife, is at Northern Oklahoma College. I am the Counselor and Students with Disabilities coordinator, as well as the Career Services Department -- it's a department of one. Starting next semester I will be teaching a class! On the side, I work at Horizons Mental Health Center in southern Kansas providing psychological and diagnostic evaluations for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Autism/Asperger's, personality and mood disorders, competency and others. Don't worry, I hold clinical licensure in Kansas, so it's legal. Do you have any hobbies? Did I mention I have three kids? My hobbies have morphed into their hobbies and sports. I love to watch my boys play soccer, baseball and basketball. Gunner takes a tumbling class and I can't wait for Ava to start sports, too. When I do get some free time, I work a home-retail business and attend scrapbooking events twice a year. Do you volunteer? I volunteer twice a year for the Back-to-School Brigade, part of Operation Homefront of Oklahoma, and also for Christmas events. Your favorite thing about Enid: Enid is my hometown. We are excited about the opportunities for sports our kids have here, that we didn't have when we lived in Kansas. And I love that my family is here. That's a bonus come deployment time. Enid has definitely been transforming the last five years and I can't wait to see what the future holds. Challenges you've overcome and/or advice to other spouses: After a few deployments -- OK it's only been 3 1/2 but with three kids that's entirely too many -- I've learned that you have to love your spouse more than you miss them, otherwise there's too much dependency going on. And as proud as you may be, everyone needs help sometimes. Allow people to help you when you need it, and when you don't. Other interesting facts about you: I get asked two questions on a weekly basis: Yes, I'm 6 feet tall, and yes, I played basketball. Sarina is the Key Spouse for the 3rd Flying Training Squadron and is married to Capt. Jacob Houston in the 3rd FTS at Vance AFB.