My name is:
Darryl Melvin
I am:
The DLA customer support representative for the 18th Airborne Corps and 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, for DLA Weapons Support (Columbus).
Briefly describe your job in a sentence:
As a customer support representative, I connect the warfighters to the total capability of DLA, ensuring they have the right parts, equipment and sustainment support required on time, every time.
How long have you worked for DLA?
I have been working for DLA for 11 years now.
What does a day in your life look like?
A day in my life looks like going around to visit warfighters, answering requests for information and assisting with requirements units have encountered as it pertains to replacement parts required for their weapon systems. I engage with senior leaders, senior maintenance techs and sustainers about parts that may influence warfighters across the globe and their operational readiness rates to prevent a particular part or parts from becoming a systemic issue so warfighters in other units aren’t affected. I send units’ RFIs up to the DLA Weapon Support headquarters for situational awareness and for headquarters’ assistance with resolving the parts issues by reaching out to vendors and original equipment manufacturers in hopes to resolve parts replacement issues in a timely fashion.
What is your favorite aspect about working for DLA?
My favorite aspect is knowing what I do daily has a direct impact on the warfighter, which could be in here in the U.S. or abroad. Behind every requisition submitted, every part required, every shipment, there’s a service member at the end of a weapon, deploying, training or responding to a mission that they’ve been tasked to do. So being part of that logistics pipeline and helping to remove friction points for warfighters in real time is what I enjoy the most.
What are your best memories of working here?
The best memories come from the real-time impact of DLA support on readiness. I recently watched warfighters ramp up to go out the door to support a real-world mission. Knowing that they had the parts required so their weapon systems will function properly forward is what inspires me to continue to do this. It reinforces that this is not just logistics; it’s readiness, it’s survivability and it’s mission success.
How exactly does your role support the warfighter?
My role is to bridge the gap between operational demand and sustainment capabilities. I work directly with the commanders, staff officers, sustainers and logisticians to anticipate their requirements. I help get ahead of supply chain issues and ensure DLA is postured to support the steady state operation and surge conditions as well.
How does your role support the National Defense Strategy’s priority of homeland defense and the Western Hemisphere?
I ensure forces are ready to respond, whether it be to natural disasters, humanitarian assistance missions, Defense Support of Civil Authorities operations or rapid deployment requirements across the region.
Is there anything you’d want your co-workers to know about you or your position?
Being a DLA customer support representative here at Fort Bragg, an area where I served on active duty for 19 years of my 26-year Army career, is probably the best job and position I could ever hope for. I understand what it means to rely on a support system like DLA. Now I get a chance to make sure those systems show up when it matters the most, whether that’s in combat, a crisis or just support here at home.
Read more from this June 2026 edition of Loglines or browse more editions of the magazine on the Loglines Magazine website.