Katrina Shmidl

BIOGRAPHY
Katrina is a United States Air Force Security Forces Veteran. Her first duty station was Aviano, Italy where she had the opportunity to travel throughout Europe; including France, Monaco, Croatia, Austria, Switzerland, Slovenia, Belgium, Luxemburg, and the Czech Republic. During her travels she learned so much about the world and met people from all over, continuously learning how to communicate without words. Katrina was selected for a position at the base inspection gate where she searched contractor vehicles from all over Europe before they entered.
Her second duty station was Ramstein, Germany where she was selected above her peers to be the base Alarm Monitor, working directly with the desk sergeant who dispatched units to all other base issues. She was responsible for acknowledging alarms all over the base and dispatching Security Forces units to those locations. Half a year into this position she was given the choice in deployments by her unit commander. She could have chosen Afghanistan, where many of her fellow airmen were being sent, or she could serve as a mini-Raven, guarding c-130s in support of the building of AFRICOM.
Katrina chose Africa and was trained by Ravens, airmen who guard Air Force One and other high-risk airborne assets. She was able to visit Chad, Niger, Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, Djibouti, the Congo, and Cameroon as well as Sicily and Greece on her way to and from those missions. During her deployment, she was often the leader of the fireteam responsible for the safety of the aircraft and personnel. While on deployment, she was selected among her peers to provide aircraft security and cockpit denial on a c-130 on standby for military operations in Libya at the beginning of the Libyan Civil War. Katrina also provided ground security for Air Force One on its way back to the states.
After Katrina separated from the military, she graduated from Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas having majored in Business Administration and Liberal Arts. After graduation from community college, Katrina took the remainder of her GI Bill and went to Texas State University where she earned her bachelor’s degree in Recreation Administration. Katrina also served as the Historian of the Association of Recreation Enthusiasts club at Texas State where she has experience photographing some of the most amazing athletes and participants which Texas State hosts in various programs. Some of these programs include the Larry Turner Classic, a wheelchair basketball tournament for all ages. Each year, she would also attend the Texas Regional Paralympic Sport’s Track and Field clinic where past Paralympians train future Paralympic children, teens, and adults to advance their skills.
Katrina is also the owner and operator of Mercury Propulsion Imagery, an aerial photography business in the state of Texas. Though she is open to photographing anything from real estate to cinematography, her real passion is recreational photography opportunities where she can challenge her skills with moving targets. Katrina is also a creative writer and content producer. She has written screenplays, comics, and has produced many YouTube educational videos.
Katrina worked as a summer camp administrator for the Aquatic Science Adventure Camp at Texas State University’s Edwards Aquifer Research and Data Center. She spent two years with the camp where she worked with teenagers, teaching the joys of interactive education. Unfortunately, her second year at the camp was canceled in 2020 due to the restrictions of COVID-19. During this time, she was given the opportunity to write, edit, and produce aquatic science educational videos for the campers who would not attend camp that year.
Her other passions include SCUBA diving, flying her drone, kayaking, off-roading, shooting guns, and fostering dogs and cats for her local Humane Society. Since 2018, Katrina has fostered and found homes for just under 20 animals. Katrina claims this has been one of her most rewarding experiences. She looks forward to hosting many more on their way to their furever homes.
Katrina is also a certified underwater gardener at Spring Lake in San Marcos, TX. As an underwater gardener, it is her responsibility to help keep this protected Texas river preserved. She keeps the springs clear of vegetation clogs and helps keep the lake clean for all the lake’s inhabitants. This volunteer work improves the life of all the rivers as well as the creatures along the entire San Marcos River, all the way to the Gulf.