Story of Staff Sergeant Perry

After a tragic house fire in Manhattan when she was just eighteen months old, Staff Sergeant Monika Perry moved to Florida with her Army father and grew up listening to stories about the military. She remembers the profound influence her family members had on her life. Tales of courage, service, and adventure – it was clearly understood from an early age that she could become the fifth generation military in her family.

At fourteen years old, she joined junior ROTC and loved the thought of serving her country.

Despite growing up with a single father, Staff Sergeant Perry overcame adversity by living with various family members on the East Coast. She was taught that if you serve your country, then your country will take care of you. Driven by a strong need for stability, she graduated high school as an honor student and was accepted into the Early Entry Program with the United States Air Force in 1999.

Seventeen years old, with a zest for life, she went to boot camp in San Antonio, TX. Then, Staff Sergeant Perry went to tech school to become an Aviation Resource Management Craftsman. Mentors and recruiters had helped her map out a career that would solidify her future. She played the trumpet, scored high on performance exams, and chose her first official orders. The military had become the home she always wanted as she was stationed at Langley, Virginia, to be part of the USAF 1st Air Wing’s 94th Fighter Squadron. Her call sign was “QuickDraw,” and enlisted peers called her “Ops Chick.” She was well respected amongst military personnel and flourished within the chain of command.

Growing up in the military and finding her place in this world was exciting and adventuresome. In 2000, her wing command was stationed in Iceland as part of a NATO operation to patrol international airspace and keep Russian fighters at bay. Her squadron was always on the move as she gained accelerated technical experience at a young age. Her job was to scramble and recover aircraft, and report all things pilot-related to her commanding officers. She became proficient with equipment and classified information. Her responsibility was to successful pilots and all things related to flight operations.

On Tuesday, September 11, 2001, Staff Sergeant Perry was waiting for a dental appointment at the Langley, Virginia AFB. She remembers looking incredulously at a television screen as an airplane crashed into tower one at the World Trade Center. Major General Stephen Goldfein stood beside her and exclaimed, “Oh shit.” A man of impeccable composure, the swear word alerted Staff Sergeant Perry’s heightened sense of awareness as Major General Goldfein instructed her to reschedule their appointments and get to the command post ASAP for debriefing.

Major General Stephen Goldfein commanded Operation Infinite Justice that day in response to the terrorist attack on the nation. Staff Sergeant Perry was literally the first active duty responder to scramble two F-15 fighter jets toward American Airlines Flight 77, which had turned around suddenly in Kentucky on a direct path toward the United States Pentagon. Due to the day’s confusion, that airplane flew below radar and ultimately crashed into the Pentagon, killing 184 Americans on board and at the federal facility. At the end of the day, Staff Sergeant Perry remembers feeling exhausted. The world would be changed forever as a nation began a year-long crisis response. Staff Sergeant Perry received three meritorious awards for Airman of the Year within her command squadron. In the aftermath, she was diagnosed with post 9/11 Respiratory Disease and started using an inhaler.

In 2002, the 94th Fighter Squadron was sent to Norway for a classified Joint Task Force operation in response to terrorism unfolding worldwide. Staff Sergeant Perry began cross-training to become a medic and figured volunteering for Iraq would look good on her record. As the United Nations declared Resolution 1441 and U.S. Congress approved military force in Iraq due to a failed disarmament of biological weapons of mass destruction, hundreds of thousands of troops flooded into Iraq to take down Al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein. President Bush deployed Iraqi Freedom.

Now deployed on a special tour of duty with the United States Army, Staff Sergeant Perry and a medical unit were erroneously switched with where Airborne Rangers were supposed to be. In 2003, she and a group of soldiers were captured at night by Al Qaeda soldiers. She had only been in Iraq for a few days when she was hit in the neck at the base of her spine, a bag placed over her head, and her hands and feet zip-tied. Staff Sergeant Perry was tortured at gunpoint for eight nightmarish days and subjected to military sexual trauma (MST) by Al Qaeda operatives.

She believes it was in March 2003 when the 82nd Airborne out of Fort Bragg, NC executed a search and rescue operation that saved her and others. They were extracted by Army helicopters and taken to safety for medical triage and Army debriefing. She was coerced into signing a non-disclosure agreement by the Army and her husband, who was serving in Kuwait at the time. So she kept quiet, not only because of her career but also to avoid the victim mentality surrounding sexual trauma stigmatization. Staff Sergeant Perry cannot remember much from that year due to the traumatic brain injury, but she does recall not wanting to be defined by eight days of hell. She agreed to restricted reporting, and her military record was supported by coinciding “buddy statements” and sealed so she could continue serving her country. After all, military service was all she knew and all she was dedicated to fulfill. Others in the international incident were broadcasted worldwide while Staff Sergeant Perry humbly continued to serve her great country. Some would say hero, while others would say casualty of war. Staff Sergeant Perry is a former POW not listed on internet databases.

A combat infantryman handler had been killed simultaneously, and a bomb-sniffing Shepard K-9 named Mojo was suddenly unattached Army equipment. Staff Sergeant Perry escorted Mojo back to the United States on an evacuation transport to receive additional assignment orders. She petitioned an Army Major to keep Mojo as a service animal and was approved based on the extraordinary circumstances of her newfound medical disposition. By April 1st, 2003, Staff Sergeant Perry was back at Langley AFB pursuing pharmaceutical training classes while simultaneously suffering from former POW, TBI, MST, PTSD, and 9/11 Respiratory Disease. Staff Sergeant Perry and Mojo forged onward, trying to put the chaos of war behind them. By the end of 2003, she graduated from clinical school, became a pharmaceutical logistics airman, and was assigned to the 1st Medical Group. She trained as a victim advocate to cope with her difficulties while pregnant with her first child.

In August of 2005, the USAF gave the dynamic duo (Mojo and Staff Sergeant Perry) a special assignment. On behalf of the military, they contributed to the Hurricane Katrina response. They spent two weeks performing medical triage services for those affected by the catastrophic event and pulled human bodies out of a region totaled by natural disaster. Staff Sergeant Perry and Mojo never separated and served admirably together through thick and thin. From 2006-2010, Staff Sergeant Perry had children, raised a family, trained other airmen, and continued to serve at Whitman Air Force Base in Mississippi.

As she severed from active duty in the military, things began to fall apart for her. Raising young children became strenuous due to her son having Autism, and towards the end of her final enlistment, she was drugged on base by a service member and suffered another MST. She processed through military severance on suicide watch. Suddenly, her husband sold everything out from under her, took the kids away, and sold her car, using the money to file for a divorce. After her divorce, Staff Sergeant Perry retired from active duty with an honorable discharge DD-214 and a brick of medals on her uniform.

Staff Sergeant Perry and Mojo spent the next four years in the Air Force Reserves until 2015. They tried to rebuild their lives together through much trial and tribulation – many psychiatric institutions. The problem was that there were no training courses on acclimating to civilian life, and she struggled tremendously with life skills and money management. When it was all said and done, she walked a precarious line between mental acuity and civilian life. She secured employment at Walmart and tried her best but got caught up in substance abuse due to the complications of her diagnosis. At 34 years old, Staff Sergeant Perry became addicted to Crystal Methamphetamines to cope with a stressful past. She proactively pursued veteran treatments at the Memphis, Tennessee Veterans Hospital and enjoyed significant blocks of sobriety and treatment completions. Physicians tried to help her at every turn despite her medical record’s plethora of co-occurring disorders. All the while, Mojo was faithfully by her side. They were a dynamic duo that could get through anything together.

She pursued equestrian training with War Horses for Heroes and loved to ride. Staff Sergeant Perry helped autistic children through equestrian therapy and found a God-given purpose in her life. Because of her substance use disorder (SUD), she admittedly suffered through progress until June 2018. Staff Sergeant Perry added SUD to a laundry list of diagnoses and hoped for relief.

It was like a whole new war she was in as she continued to seek Veterans Affairs assistance. Then everything changed. In June 2018, President Trump signed the MISSION Act, which afforded veterans community care outside the VA hospital system. After twenty years of wartime tragedy, something had to be done to accommodate millions of veterans suffering from war-related illnesses. During a Washington, D.C. event, Trump signed the Act and handed the pen to Chuck Byers from Arizona. Veterans could now get help from community-contracted partners.

Ms. Perry remembers that day well. She dressed up as the Statue of Liberty to celebrate the historic signing of the MISSION Act. She even got the physicians at the Memphis VA to write her a consultation and referral to receive specialized treatment.

In fact, she was one of the first twenty-five recipients of a special grant per diem (GPD) nationally. She was excited to get the needed treatment but scared she would get lost driving out to Wickenburg, Arizona, to admit herself into the Meadows Treatment Center. She chose that facility because it was one of two places in the country that would welcome her and her faithful battle buddy, Mojo.

In 2019, Staff Sergeant Perry and Mojo struck off across the country towards Arizona. The Memphis VA had helped her map the journey and instructed her to plot out pit stops along the way at military bases to ensure her safety. At one point, a local television station was contacted. It broadcasted her journey with people aside the road, providing dog food and water bottles like a maiden voyage towards freedom from active addiction. Memorable times complete with picturesque sunsets and majestic highway travel. Mojo hung his head out of the window of that Toyota Highlander for hours on end while Staff Sergeant Perry dreamed of a new life. She knew she could succeed after all she’d already accomplished. She knew it was in her. And she wanted it like never before.

In the fall of 2019. Staff Sergeant Perry underwent EMDR, Complex PTSD, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) therapies, graduated the Meadows Treatment Center, and moved into an apartment in north Phoenix.

Sadly, unfounded complaints by her neighbor resulted in an eviction. COVID-19 suddenly enveloped the planet. A pandemic ensues. Staff Sergeant Perry and Mojo found themselves homeless in Maricopa County, Arizona. She remembered something her family had impressed upon her growing up, something she was used to doing – going to the local VA medical center for help no matter what.

She catches COVID-19 but survives. She and Mojo attempt to sleep in their vehicle in the VA parking lot until campus police run them off with a trespassing warning.  She relapsed on drugs again, and anxiety crept back into her demeanor. She attempted to seek shelter in the Phoenix VA chapel until the police threatened to arrest her for loitering. The chaplain stopped the arrest. She admits herself into the psych ward on the fifth floor of the 7th Street VA Medical Center but leaves AMA after a night attendant attempts to molest her. She began to suffer from medical complications related to the abovementioned disorders and developed Hepatitis C Keno type 1A. Doctors begged her to continue treatment, but she kept receiving criminal warnings. Hence, she migrated to the Central Arizona Shelter System (CASS) for shelter since the VA police wouldn’t give her any resources or help. Then she wrecked her Highlander and was without a vehicle.

Staff Sergeant Perry and Mojo were homeless in Phoenix, AZ. They tried CASS services but left after succumbing to a newfound fentanyl addiction that led to a detox seizure that eliminated 25% of her eyesight. Her medical prognosis at this point is unprecedented as far as modern science. Things were getting complicated. Then, on August 3, 2020, Mojo suddenly died from natural causes. Mojo was approximately 19 years old. Staff Sergeant Perry was destroyed with grief and having a difficult time without her federally prescribed service animal by her side. She was grief-stricken, and addiction took over her life; Staff Sergeant Perry and a boyfriend migrated to Tempe, Arizona, to seek safety. They lived at Daily Park in Tempe until July 3, 2021. That day, the boyfriend’s grandmother passed away, and they were robbed in the park. There were police reports filed, and migrating from city park to city park, they eventually resided where many homeless people sought safety in 2022: the Tempe Salt River bottom. She recalls feeling like a refugee in her own country.

2022 was filled with a drug-induced, unsheltered lifestyle as Staff Sergeant Perry and her boyfriend attempted to figure out what to do. On many occasions, the Tempe HOPE team personnel engaged with them. HOPE is a homeless outreach project designed to coordinate homeless solutions for people on the streets of Tempe.

The problem was that the city employee repeatedly coerced her to leave the boyfriend and give up her veteran disability income as a stipulation to receive city of Tempe homeless services. A city employee sent flirtatious texts for two years and attempted to intervene in Staff Sergeant Perry’s personal relationship. She begged for help many times as she participated in a brief church shelter program (I-HELP) for several days. Promises were made but never fulfilled by the HOPE team representative. If anything, she felt creeped out by how the city employee addressed her and put such conditions on her for emergency services. The City of Tempe did not provide the services they market on their website.

On April 20, 2022, Staff Sergeant Perry was mistaken for another woman in a police raid in Tempe. She rode up to a house to pick out a new kitten from a litter and was abruptly tackled off her bicycle by two Tempe police officers. Witnesses allege it looked like she had been abducted. The insult of the incident was compounded by injury as Staff Sergeant Perry suffered a miscarriage on the sidewalk outside the raid on the targeted house. She bled on a gurney, was taken to jail, and was charged with possessing fentanyl. Awestruck at what happened, she was confusingly released from jail for the first time in her life. She now felt like a petty criminal but continued to ask for help from the HOPE team in Tempe. At one point, she was threatened arrest in Tempe for trying to help a homeless person in a wheelchair. While performing triage on the man’s feet, police arrived and told them they were trespassing.

In late 2022, Staff Sergeant Perry developed a palpable disdain for Tempe police officers; they seemed to be on a mission to eradicate an entire homeless population from the city. The river bottom has been cleared of hundreds of people and deemed a no-trespassing zone. Drones were used to alert law enforcement of straggling dwellers. Arrests were made as Staff Sergeant Perry and her boyfriend escaped to reside under a bridge at the river bottom on the city’s border. It seemed like there was a mass exodus of homeless people now thrust towards Phoenix as they continued asking the city worker for services to no avail.

Staff Sergeant Perry attests to Tempe employees refusing motel shelter but directing her to the VA CRRC for veteran homeless services. For two years, she was repeatedly denied assistance by the VA CRRC and Tempe at least eight times-  HOPE and Tempe police would push her to Phoenix, and the VA CRRC would deny her based on her income level. She didn’t understand what to do.

In late 2022, she resided at an Air Force family’s home in Tempe for a couple of months while attempting to participate in a drug diversion program mandated by the city of Tempe. She attended a Zoom call program from October 2022 to March 2023 until a representative stopped allowing her the login code with the declaration, “You’re probably gonna be dead within the week, so what’s the point?” The family house was sold, and she became homeless again. Then, the boyfriend went to jail. Staff Sergeant Perry was alone and scared.

In May 2023, she bought a Scion coupe with her 100% disability money. She drove to Luke Air Force Base in Surprise, Arizona, and asked for help, always relying upon the instinct that the military would assist. The base supervisor intervened at the gate, telling her she had a criminal warrant in Tempe and wasn’t allowed on base for two years minimum, regardless of her pleas for assistance. Military police instructed her that she needed to be off the property within 15 minutes. Defeated and alone, Staff Sergeant Perry entertained the thought of suicide for the first time in years. She drove back to familiar grounds in Tempe and contemplated ending her life.

Giving things one more try with desperate courage on autopilot, Staff Sergeant Perry tried the VA CRRC a final time on June 6, 2023. She was turned away at the door due to her disability income exceeding their service qualification. What else is new, she thought. She attempted to call the city of Tempe employee one more time but was told that he no longer worked for Tempe and couldn’t help her. Staff Sergeant Perry was suffering from extreme heat outside and didn’t know if she had anything else to give or live for. Suicide on her mind, she migrated back to a burnt-down trap house in Tempe, desperate for guidance and help.

My name is Benjamin Jeffrey. I’m the lead outreach specialist for Carry Me Productions (CMP). CMP is a homeless service provider in Tempe, Arizona. We help those suffering from street homelessness get their lives together in a program called Carry Forward. I’m also a military veteran who served in the US Navy during Desert Storm and two combat tours during the first Gulf War era. I’ve dedicated my life to the service of others.

On June 9 2023, Staff Sergeant Perry ran up to me in a Tempe alleyway and slapped her military medical ID on my clipboard as I was assisting another homeless woman. Admittedly, I was perturbed at the behavior but, nevertheless, followed Staff Sergeant Perry down the alley towards her parked vehicle. My jaw dropped in disbelief within ten minutes as she told me who she was. I’ve never met anyone with such a story. She had been asking for help for almost three years and seemed to be falling right through the cracks.

I contacted the CEO of CMP, Carrie Nowocin, to staff the situation. We were able to get a hold of the director of the VA CRRC. He put in a request for Staff Sergeant Perry to receive emergency hotel shelter funding through the Arizona Housing Coalition. USVETS veteran homeless shelter was at capacity, so I agreed to monitor her in a Motel 6 room for the weekend upon the directive to reconvene the following Monday for emergency services and assessment. I assisted this courageous woman through a rough detoxification from fentanyl. I learned she had been on a suicide binge, smoking 85 to 100 pills daily and trying to kill herself. On Monday, June 12, 2023, CMP had a plan of action in place and picked this young lady up from the hotel shelter situation.

I immediately called the Tempe HOPE/CARE line number and was told someone from the HOPE team would call back. No one did. Then I called the Tempe supervisor for HOPE and calmly explained I needed emergency shelter placement for a former POW, Iraq veteran. She entered Staff Sergeant Perry’s identifying information into the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and claimed that Staff Sergeant Perry didn’t qualify for Tempe services since her homelessness began in another city.

The Senior Social Services Coordinator – HOPE (Human Services Department) said she had beds available at the Tempe Emergency Shelter, but Staff Sergeant Perry needed to return to where she came from. I was flabbergasted and nearly speechless. I explained the extraordinary circumstances and nature of Staff Sergeant Perry’s situation, but it seemed to fall upon cold ears. I explained she had a Tempe ID and had been in Tempe for two years, but apparently, none of that mattered. The city employee alleged her directive to be city policy, and that was that. I wondered why it was called Tempe HOPE since it seemed to be anything but.

I had Staff Sergeant Perry follow my vehicle as she suffered post-acute withdrawals out of Tempe, contemplating my anger at the denial of services. I took her once more to the VA CRRC for emergency shelter services and assessment. We were turned away outside the door with a bottle of water and the official recommendation to stay strong, Monika! And the final words by an employee, “It’s a tough world out there!”.

Running out of viable options, I called the CMP CEO and was directed to transport Staff Sergeant Perry to the Phoenix VA Medical Center for emergency room services. I contacted a Community Care company called Vogue Recovery Center and decided upon offering a diversion program for PTSD SUD veterans called VALOR.

Staff Sergeant Perry agreed to request a consult and referral to Vogue VALOR despite the uncomfortable ordeal of returning to the VA hospital, where she had been ostracized several times before.

Staff Sergeant Monika Perry got sober on Women’s Veteran’s Day, June 12, 2023. The VA miraculously provided her with participation in the life-saving services of the Vogue VALOR program in Phoenix, AZ.

I was connected with Governor Hobbs’ veteran advisor and commissioner for the Arizona Department of Veteran Services, Chuck Byers.  Mr. Byers contacted Senator Krysten Sinema’s veteran staffers. He asked them to offer Staff Sergeant Perry a Wounded Warrior scholarship to receive a service animal prescription for a Golden Retriever puppy through Legend Acres in Surprise, Arizona. Staff Sergeant Perry named him Memphis after the VA that sent her to Arizona for help.

Staff Sergeant Perry is flourishing in the VALOR program and experiencing life anew. With the proper support from actual caring professionals, we are confident she will achieve permanent stability as long as she wants the help. It’s a one-day-at-a-time deal, for sure. Willingness is the key.

Everyone (friends and family alike) is incredibly proud of her progress in the last four months. Staff Sergeant Perry attests to her plight with homelessness in Tempe, making her a stronger and better American.

Mayor Corey Woods and Tempe City Council have unanswered my formal complaint to the city of Tempe for more than three months. We don’t expect recourse—business as usual in a city hell-bent on eradicating homelessness with a stick and no carrot. Staff Sergeant Perry will Carry Forward without looking back on callous civil rights violations, negligence, ethical breaches, and false promises.

The United States Air Force is a proud institution that has played a significant role in the transformation of one of their own, Airman Staff Sergeant Perry. Through her time in service, Staff Sergeant Perry grew and developed into a quality citizen with a strong sense of duty, honor, and respect. However, despite her transformation, society has unfortunately failed to support Staff Sergeant Perry in her ongoing efforts to sustain her new way of life. She has remained committed to her values and has struggled to find the resources and support to continue her path to success. We urge Tempe and the Veterans Affairs to recognize our veterans’ value and their critical role in our communities. We call on all citizens to support our veterans in their ongoing efforts to lead productive and fulfilling lives. Staff Sergeant Perry is a testament to the transformative power of military service, and we hope that others may follow in her footsteps and that society will come together to support those who have sacrificed so much for our country. I would venture to say that it is our patriotic, moral obligation to do so.

On June 17, 2023, I apologized to Ms. Perry on behalf of the entire state of Arizona. Happy Women’s Veteran’s Day, ma’am. CMP will see you through your next adventure. Hopefully, others will join in rallying around your incredible commitment to us throughout the fascinating years of your life. By your leave, Staff Sergeant! I am a veteran resource advocate and will support this client as long as I’m on this side of the dirt.

NOTE: Individual testimonies are written in good faith and have been verified as accurate to the best of CMP’s knowledge and understanding about each individual’s situation.