Motherhood and Mentorship
June 2025 Mentorship Success Story
Holly Parimore expected her life to follow a more traditional path. After high school, she enrolled at the prestigious University of Massachusetts Amherst and planned to complete her degree by 22. But at the end of her freshman year, Parimore, whose grandfather had served in the US Navy, couldn’t ignore the call of military service. She donned Navy blues as a Cryptologic Technician.
Nineteen years and seven ranks later, YNCS (Senior Chief) Parimore hopped on board with ACP in 2023 to prep for retirement the following year. She wanted to find out how her extensive personnel and administrative experience in the military would translate to the civilian life she left behind as a young college student. One thing was certain: it wasn’t 2003 anymore.
“I was overwhelmed,” Parimore says of the new job landscape. “So much change, so many resources that were hard to weed through…It was uncharted territory, and I didn’t understand my own value.” ACP’s no-cost mentorship, with its year-long, individualized structure, meant she didn’t have to sign up for other paid programs that offered unrealistic promises.
As a woman in leadership, Parimore was thrilled to work with a woman Mentor who could simplify the corporate landscape. This connection took on new significance when Parimore became pregnant just prior to her retirement.
With a baby on the way, the mentorship took on a more personal tenor. “The transition didn’t go anywhere close to how I thought,” says Parimore.
“Usually I have a plan, and things go according to plan…I wasn’t sure how to balance motherhood and working in the civilian sector, since I had only done it in the military.”
Parimore’s Mentor reassured her that she could, and should, feel comfortable taking a career break after the birth of her daughter. She advised Parimore to approach the next year on her terms, explaining that being in the private sector offered greater flexibility than the military.
The pair stayed in close contact during this time. Once Parimore felt ready to resume her job search, they took a focused approach, beginning with reviewing job postings to determine where Parimore’s skills would best slot into a role. “My Mentor helped me gauge which jobs were realistic…Her expertise helped me narrow my focus,” she says. They also reviewed and refined her résumé, discussed what human resources certifications would be useful (Parimore ended up getting her SHRM after the year was up), and conducted mock interviews.
The formal end of their mentorship was just the closing of one chapter. Several months later, Parimore received a great job offer in Tennessee and immediately called her Mentor to guide her through the negotiation process. “Women almost always take the first offer [in a negotiation],” says Parimore, who has observed this on both sides of the hiring process. With her Mentor’s help, she was able to confidently present her value to the company and receive an offer above what she expected. As she prepares to begin her new role as an HR Generalist, she and her Mentor still talk frequently about how to approach long-term professional and personal planning.
Parimore implores her fellow women Veterans to seek Mentors who can guide them through the thorny transition to civilian life.
“My mentorship…has been an amazing experience,” she says. “I have learned so much, and [it] has really helped me remain flexible with future plans and expectations.”
Learn more about ACP’s Women Veterans Program and apply to start the mentorship process.
