‘Service above self will never leave you lacking’: Delegate Mike Cherry’s journey from the Air Force to the General Assembly 

COLONIAL HEIGHTS, Va. (WRIC) -- For Mike Cherry, service is a way of life.

“It was actually kind of funny because I actually enlisted and never told my parents until after I had already signed all the paperwork,” Cherry told 8News.  “It was a bit of a moment where they went, 'what did you say?'” 

That service brought Cherry to six continents and about 75 countries during his 20-year career in the United States Air Force. 

“My first mission out, our landing gear didn't properly extend, and so we’re having to circle around in an emergency landing, again, this is my first mission, we’re carrying 89,000 pounds of bombs into Saudi Arabia during Desert Shield/Desert Storm, and our landing gear malfunctions,” Cherry explained. 

After retirement, Cherry’s service continued when he was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates in 2021. 

“I distinctly remember standing in the chamber and realizing that I am now part of history in Virginia, that in this grand experiment of representative government, that’s been going on for 406 years now, that my name is now part of that,” Cherry said.

“When you think back to what that intensity was like,” Cherry said, referring to his time in the Air Force, “the intensity of a General Assembly session takes on a different meaning. There’s a calmness that comes with that, there’s a bit of self-assuredness to know, I’ve been in some pretty difficult situations, and this is nothing compared to those, so let’s figure it out and let’s make a good decision.”

Cherry said throughout his lifetime of service, he’s always tried to help his community and his country. 

“Service above self will never leave you lacking. Giving to others will always be more rewarding than it ever is to take from someone else,” Cherry told 8News.