OUR LIVES | MINNESOTA NATIONAL GUARD FEATURE
Holding Out For Hero: Captain Forrest Jennings BY ISAAC JOHNSON | PHOTOS COURTESY OF CAPTAIN FORREST JENNINGS Like many heroes, Captain Forrest Jennings of the Minnesota National Guard has been on a quest. What started as a personal mission to “change the stars” has become a humanitarian campaign to help others master their own fate as he did. Coming from a difficult upbringing and a conservative environment where he wasn’t comfortable to be himself, he was looking to escape the situation and sought the feeling of being a part of something larger than himself. “I’ve always felt a calling to military service,” CPT Jennings says, “it was a way to elevate myself to what I thought that I could achieve.” CPT Jennings first joined the military as a
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US Army Cadet in his home state of Oklahoma while attending college and was commissioned after graduating in 2013. He moved to the Oregon Army National Guard for a couple years before finally finding his home with the Minnesota National Guard in Duluth. “I fell in love with Minnesota and the Minnesota National Guard. I really love the organization,” says CPT Jennings. There is no doubt in the strength of his dedication as he’s given it his all. He’s built himself a reputation as a trustworthy and capable leader serving in multiple positions as a Platoon Leader, Troop Executive Officer, and three Troop Commands, in addition to provid-
ing training to future officers. “I always tell my trainees, be worthy of being followed,” says CPT Jennings, “behave in a way that makes people want to follow you, lead by example.” He believes that a leader should be present in their team’s most adverse environments, “a leader needs to be where it’s the most difficult, where the most difficult decisions need to be made.” By being a servant leader you can be empathetic but still hold people to a standard. He started full time with the Minnesota National Guard as a training officer in 2017 and now works as an officer recruiter. CPT Jennings is also the advisor for the LGBTQ Special Emphasis council, the Minnesota
