440th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
2/11/2014 - POPE FIELD, N.C. -- Staff Sgt. Melissa Deardorff has been an Air Force reservist for over four years and serves as a flight medic with the 36th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron. The self-proclaimed military brat comes from a family of service members and her love of volleyball began while her family was stationed in Hawaii.
Deardorff has been playing volleyball for over 17 years; starting while her family lived in Hawaii, but it was not until her family moved to the District of Columbia that she began playing competitively. She competed at the collegiate level for the University of South Carolina in Aiken where she earned a degree in exercise science.
When she finished school and enlisted in the Air Force Reserve, she thought her time on the court was over and considered herself to be retired. It wasn't until her first deployment that she learned about the U. S. Air Force volleyball team.
"I was on my first deployment in Afghanistan, just playing pick-up volleyball," Deardorff said. "One of the guys on the team said that I needed to come and play for the Air Force."
Even though she had doubts that the Air Force would put her on orders to play volleyball she decided to submit the application. After she returned home from her deployment in Bagram, Afghanistan, Deardorff received a call from the Air Force volleyball team in Europe inviting her to come out and play.
Starting next month the U.S. Air Forces in Europe team will begin practice in Ramstein, Germany. The team will play against other Air Force teams from across Europe at the tournament in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The tournament concludes with a banquet with all of the other European teams, where it's common to trade medals, insignias and badges with the other players.
Once the European tournament is completed, the team will return to the U.S. and play the teams from the other services. From there, members from each of the services will be selected to form a combined services team to play against the European combined services teams.
"I love that I have been able to continue to play this sport at such a high level of competition," said Deardorff.
She has recently completed her nursing degree from Excelsior College and wants to become a trauma nurse in her civilian career. With her nursing degree completed, plans on submitting the paperwork to become a commissioned officer and a flight nurse in the Air Force Reserve.
When asked about what is next for her when it comes to volleyball, she explained that she is considering going professional, but went on to say that turning professional puts heavy restrictions on the amateur teams she will be able to play on in the future.
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