Janet Mayo

Lance Corporal, U.S. Marine Corps
Master of Arts Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Wayne State University

Janet wanted to join the military right out of High School but was unable to do so because she was in foster care and could not get the waiver signed to allow her to join. She instead pursued college for two years but without a sense of direction and because no one was checking in on her she did not do the best in school. Janet received an email stating she could not register for any additional classes until her math requirements were fulfilled. This prompted her to drop out of college and join the U.S. Marine Corps. One week later she was on Parris Island completing boot camp and went on to serve five years of active duty and three years in the reserves.

Serving in the Military Police, Janet was initially stationed at Camp Lejeune before completing a tour in Okinawa, Japan. Throughout her service, she responded to many calls dealing with domestic abuse and suicides leading to the development of severe anxiety which was exacerbated after service due to fellow service members completing and attempting suicide. In addition to developing anxiety, Janet was injured through training exercises resulting in right and left hip strains, cervical spine degenerative disc disease, chronic migraines, and other physical ailments.

Following her honorable discharge Janet returned to college and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a minor in Gender, Sexuality, and Women Studies. Having the desire to continue her education with the goal of becoming a counselor, Janet was referred to Sentinels of Freedom to receive support while she pursued a Master of Arts degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling and was accepted for the Spring 2018 cohort. The support Janet received allowed her to address the financial concerns she had while going to school full-time and raising three young children as a single mother. She took advantage of the financial coaching offered and created a plan to move forward and support her family while pursuing her goals. Janet was also provided peer mentoring and the routine check-ins with Sentinels of Freedom allowed her to continuously revisit her goals and succeed in school.

Janet has since gone on to work full-time as a counselor with The On Earth Counseling Project. Her passion is working with individuals within the LGBTQIA+ community, providing counseling to teenagers and adults as well as individual and couples counseling. Janet returned to school for a second master’s in criminal justice, graduating in 2023. In the future, she hopes to pursue a Ph.D. in Social Work or Counseling Psychology.

“I wanted to say thank you so much for this opportunity. Sentinels of Freedom has provided such an amazing opportunity for myself and my family. I am so thankful for everything. I look forward to completing my degree and showing Sentinels of Freedom all that I can do with this amazing opportunity.” – Janet Mayo