Chief Master Sergeant (Ret.) Denise M. Jelinski-Hall, a native of Minnesota, began her distinguished career in 1984, serving in Texas, Mississippi, Nebraska, and California before moving to Hawai’i in 1990 where she joined the 297th Air Traffic Control Flight, Barbers Point. In 2004, she was selected as the Command Chief Master Sergeant for the 154 th Wing, Hawaii Air National Guard. In 2006, she was selected as the Command Chief Master Sergeant for the Hawaii Air National Guard. Shortly thereafter the Adjutant General of Hawai’i selected her to serve as the State Senior Enlisted Leader for the Hawai’i National Guard (Army and Air). She held both positions simultaneously until she assumed the position of the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Chief of the National Guard Bureau in February 2010.

In this position, her responsibilities included advising the Chief of the National Guard Bureau on all enlisted matters affecting training and utilization, health of the force, and enlisted professional development of approximately 415,000 National Guard Soldiers and Airmen.

In 2010, Chief Master Sergeant Jelinski-Hall had the distinction of being the first woman to achieve the highest position ever held by an enlisted woman in the history of the United States Armed Forces.

Upon retirement, Chief Jelinski-Hall was awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal. She serves as a board of trustee for United Through Reading, volunteers at her church, and is a military advisor at Veterans United Home Loans. Chief Jelinski-Hall is the author of the book, “From the Prairie to the Pentagon” and co-author of the leadership book “Breaching the Summit”. She holds an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree presented by Hawai’i Pacific University.