Maria Canales-Terry is an HR professional, United States Army Veteran with 7 years of service in active duty and reserves and has been an active member and spokesperson for Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) since 2010. Maria first joined the Army in May of 2003 as a Financial Management Specialist attached to the 8th Finance BN out of Baumholder, Germany, and was deployed to Iraq in 2005. She returned to Germany in October of 2006, and in June of 2007, Maria returned to the United States and continued her service in the U.S. Army Reserves. Upon her return to her hometown of New York City, Maria enrolled in school and obtained a BS in Business Management and a MBA in Human Resources. Today, she lives in Dallas, TX with her husband and son.