Honoring Those Who Serve: Robby Bennett

With a family at home and a career, Robby Bennett had only one regret in life.

In high school he dreamed of serving in the military, like his uncle and grandfather, but chose a different path.

Decades later, he decided to return to that dream. So at 36, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy and shipped off to boot camp.

Bennett, a Navy Reserve member and L3Harris employee, will be honored at an upcoming Orlando Magic game as the L3Harris-sponsored Hometown Hero. L3Harris is partnering with the Magic to give away seats to veterans, active-duty personnel and their guests through our Seats for Soldiers effort.

It's one of many ways L3Harris supports people in uniform during and after their service through its mission-aligned philanthropic programs and partnerships, such as with Homes For Our Troops and Special Operations Warrior Foundation.

In my first interview to work here, the reason I chose L3Harris, aside from the culture, is that I was blown away by our mission here and who we support, Bennett said. We develop cutting-edge technology for warfighters. It gives me a huge amount of satisfaction to come to work in a role that supports people around the world.

He noted that as one of the oldest recruits at boot camp, he was able to guide the younger ones in how to persevere through the rigorous training. But they taught him some lessons too, such as introducing him to new music and even new dance moves.

In January 2021, Bennett was deployed to the Middle East and returned to his position at L3Harris a year later. He said his supervisor and team checked up on him and made his transition back seamless.

I'm extremely appreciative of what L3Harris did for me, he said. They're extremely supportive in what I need to do and have to do. As soon as I got back, I fell right back into the fold. To have people you work with and who care that much is invaluable. All of the people in the country who are reservists couldn't do that without that support.

Outside of work, Bennett volunteers at the National Navy SEAL Museum in Fort Pierce, Florida, which also reignited his interest in serving. Working at L3Harris and volunteering at the museum, he saw customers and veterans with their service displayed on baseball hats and military IDs, and that's when he decided he to return to his dream.

The biggest decision most military members make is the decision to serve, he said.

Today, Bennett continues to work as a reservist.

It's really special to me because I'm getting to put both halves of my career together, he said. Yes, I serve in the reserves, but L3Harris is also providing support for first responders and military globally. And having some part of that provides a huge sense of satisfaction and appreciation. It's also neat when you're sitting across from a first responder and he has an L3Harris radio on his chest. It's nice to know whatever my small piece, I get to play a role.

LINK:	https://www.l3harris.com/newsroom/editorial/2022/11/honoring-those-who...
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