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  • Award Winner (Military): @shaafes1
  • Special Event Interviews

Award Winner (Military): @shaafes1

getwetsports September 15, 2025
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1.) Congrats on winning in the Military category in the 2025 Wet Awards – can you tell us a little bit about your military background?

I started off as a 67U which was a Chinook (helicopter) mechanic and then I spent 6 years as an Aviation Life Support Tech running the 12th Brigade offices in Germany until I was selected to serve as a Standardization Evaluator for Europe.

I did that duty for about 2 years until I was reassigned to teach at the Unmanned Maintainers Course at Fort Huachuca Arizona. While I was there I served as a Section Lead, a site lead and the course manager. During my time there I attended courses and was later reassigned as a 15E UAS mechanic.

I was selected to participate in the Army’s Instructor of the Quarter program; winning that let me participate in the Army instructor of the year competition which I was later awarded the U.S. Army Academic Aviation Instructor of the Year giving me the chance to attend the UAS Grey Eagle course. I moved to Fort Drum which was going to be my last duty station as the QA/QC NCOIC (Non-Commissioned Officer in Charge).

I served 16 and a half years active duty before medical retirement. I was deployed 2 tours to Iraq, 2 tours to Afghanistan, 1 tour in Cyprus, and 1 tour in Kuwait.  

2.) How did you make the transition from the military life into the gaming life?  Are there things you learned in the military you apply to gaming?

I played games to get away from stress when I had the chance and it was just something that I enjoyed so when I was separated from the Army it gave me a chance to game a bit more and be able to check out this streaming thing and thanks to the support of my friends I was able to confidently give it a go.
It takes time and work if you want to do things correctly. Things like networking and talking to others in the gaming world let alone in the gaming bubble you are in for example the main game you stream helped a lot. Starting off I saw a lot of people going into others chats sending money and asking for shout outs or raid outs and I just kept thinking to myself that cant be the way things are done. 

3.) What advice would you share for others in the military or veterans looking to find their way in the gaming space?

It is not the same as the military by any means.

You will have to build your own community or find one that fits you and get to know others. There are very many people that will not have your best interest in mind or have the team mind set so take things slow and make sure you get to know the people you met in the gaming world there can be as many roughs as there are gems.

Also do not get down on yourself and stay the course we are starting over no matter what you did before this is a new space and we are starting at the bottom. 

4.) What did winning the award mean to you and your community?  How were you able to drive the involvement you did to bring home the win?

Winning the award was more of a shock to me than it was my community.

I have been blessed to have a very supportive community; I spoke to them at the start and talked about it daily to them asking them if they had the time to go vote and to stop by other streams wishing everyone the best.

I was glad to have been able to drop into other vets streams and be able to see others outside of my normal foot print so being the wettest just now means I have no excuse not to be hydrated. 

5.) Final question – You become president of GetWetSports – what category are you adding in the next award show?

I just recently saw a sub-a-thon where you could feed animals. I FEED COWS VIA THE INTERNET!!!! That is all. 

You can find @Shaafes1 on X/Twitter and learn about their content HERE

 

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