First Hispanic Female General for Florida National Guard Is from Puerto Rico

Colonel Valeria Gonzalez-Kerr has just been promoted to Brigadier General. She is the first Hispanic woman to gain this rank in Florida’s National Guard, and she is from Puerto Rico.

General Gonzalez-Kerr gained her BS in Business from the University of Puerto Rico, Bayamon and an MBA from Touro University International in California. She is a graduate of the Quartermaster Officer Basic Course, Military Intelligence Officer Advanced Course, Command and General Staff College, Airborne School and Support Operations Course. She has also completed Army War College.

Gonzalez-Kerr has been a member of the U.S. Military since 1984, when she began in the Reserve. She went into active service in the U.S. Army in 1986 and has served since then in an array of positions:

• Platoon Leader
• Commander, Headquarters Detachment, 50th Supply and Service Battalion
• Battalion Personnel Officer
• Intelligence Officer and Linguist, 260th Military Intelligence Battalion
• Personnel Officer
• Executive Officer, Florida National Guard Recruiting and Retention Command
• Assistant Chief of Staff, Joint Force Headquarters, Florida
• Battalion Commander, 927th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion
• Commander, Homestead-based 50th Regional Support Group
• Director of Human Resources for the Florida National Guard

Gonzalez-Kerr’s has been honored with many decorations:

• Legion of Merit
• Bronze Star Medal
• Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters
• Army Commendation Medal with four oak leaf clusters
• Army Achievement Medal with one oak leaf cluster
• Humanitarian Service Medal
• Two Overseas Service Ribbons
• Florida Meritorious Service Ribbon
• Florida Service Ribbon
• Florida State Active Duty Ribbon
• Parachutist Badge

Gonzalez-Kerr is the first Hispanic female general, and she is also just one of more than 200,000 Puerto Ricans who have served in the U.S. military, beginning with the first company of Puerto Ricans in the U.S. Army, shown in the photo above. Since she lives in Florida, she has the right to vote for her Commander in Chief.

The residents of Puerto Rico who serve in the U.S. Armed Forces are not able to vote for the president and they do not have the voice in the legislature that American Citizens should have. Sign the petition for statehood for Puerto Rico.