Not long after 9/11, Lance Hooker turned 17 and decided to join the Army. During his military career, he deployed multiple times to Afghanistan, Iraq, and other undisclosed locations with Special Operations Command – Central. He also was selected to support a few “secret squirrel” projects for the NSA.
“Much like a lot of my peer group, the events of 9/11 spurred a patriotic fire for the call to be a part of something bigger. I owe who I am today to my time spent in the U.S. Army as a signaler.”
While in the Army, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Computer Networks and Cybersecurity from the University of Maryland Global Campus and a master’s in Education Technology from James Madison University. Lance retired at 39 after 22 years of active-duty service.
Transitioning from the Military to the Civilian Sector
Right after retirement, Lance taught at a middle school in Maryland in “what us older folks would call ‘shop class’ but is now known as technology education.” He taught his students how to program robotic cars, designed rockets, built enclosures for a hydroponics lab, and “even did the CO2 cars and built miniature bridges out of balsa wood only to crush them.” He said while he loved every minute of it, he looked to expand his career in DefCon.
Lance says he heard of COLSA through some friends when he was still on Active Duty, and they spoke highly of the work and team atmosphere. While COLSA sounded great, he still had some misgivings about transitioning from military service to civilian work:
“Retiring from Active Duty was a tough and stressful time, specifically not knowing where I stood with my peers who had been a part of “corporate” America for the last 22 years. I was worried about how I would compare, but when I interviewed at COLSA, those fears were quickly set aside as I was able to translate my skill set from military service to the contractor side. I am very happy with our decision to leave Maryland and come to Northern Alabama to be a part of Team COLSA.”
Lance’s Contributions on the COLSA Team
At COLSA, Lance serves as the Team Leader for the Package Support Team in support of the U.S. Army Materiel Command (AMC). His key responsibility is to advise the government customer on the cyber security posture for facility related control systems under the AMC umbrella. His supervisor, Joe Norman, Cyber Analyst, shared this about Lance:
“Lance guides his Package Support Team to constant excellence of work on a daily basis. He constantly shows how he can prioritize tasks given by the Government customer in an extremely fast-paced work environment. Lance’s daily contributions and work ethic are exactly what is needed for continuously building the COLSA Family Team.”
Sabrina Stedman, Cyber Analyst Action Officer and Lance’s teammate at AMC, said this about Lance:
“From day one on the Army Material Command (AMC) contract, Lance hit the ground running. In his first 90 days, he demonstrated deep expertise, a can-do attitude, and adaptability in a fast-paced, ever-changing environment. Lance’s knowledge and steady leadership inspire confidence at all levels. His recommendations have directly contributed to informed, timely decisions that support AMC’s mission of cyber resiliency in a contested environment.”
When we asked Lance if he has a superpower, he responded humbly: “I don’t have any issues asking the tough questions. I don’t pretend to know everything, but I know a guy or gal that does. My team is fantastic, and they are the true folks with the superpowers!”
Family & Fun Hobbies
Lance is the proud father of 5 children. He says they keep he and his wife “on their toes, even if a couple of them are out of the house now. They are really what this life is all about.”
He also enjoys spending time on one of the nearby lakes in Alabama and works with some of his friends on the development and hosting of a video game server.
