Each duty day presents a new challenge for the Sailor who leads the effort to maintain the health of Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point.

Hospital Corpsman Second Class Ashlyn Sanders serves as the Directorate Leading Petty Officer for the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine aboard Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point.

“A typical day on duty in preventive medicine is unique because we don’t see patients,” Sanders said. “I start the day with a morning meeting with my Sailors where we discuss our daily schedule and share recent personal and professional accomplishments.”

Under her direction, the department’s sailors and civilians then carry out their daily schedule. Each month, the team conducts approximately 34 sanitation inspections, 15 mosquito surveillance operations and 22 water sampling operations aboard MCAS Cherry Point.

Sanders, who is from Anchorage, Alaska, prepares the night before her shift by packing lunches and snacks for her children and laying out her uniform. She typically wakes up before her family and listens to an audio book on the way to the clinic.

Her duties and responsibilities require her to be flexible and adapt to situations and circumstances that are outside of her control on an almost daily basis. Weather, base operations and current events frequently change her team’s priorities as they accomplish their mission to make the installation a healthy place and protect the well-being of the people who live and work on board the base.

Sanders prioritizes family time at the end of her day and often reads books, watches a favorite movie or plays board games with her children and husband. These activities bring her joy, Sanders says, and knowing her family is proud of and supports her service makes even the longest day feel good.

“This command (Naval Health Clinic Cherry Point) has some of the most motivated and independent first-year Sailors I have ever had the privilege of working with,” Sanders said. “Not only do they make it easy for me to lead in my various roles, but … they also teach me and help me improve as a leader.”