Tower-Fall-2018

14 TOWER | FALL 2018 Meritorious Service Medal, she started sharing her own experience and what she learned from others serving alongside her. It started with small groups of friends and family, then grew to groups of school children and later to as many as 600 individuals at a time, including on the Library of Congress Discussion Panel with Dr. Jill Biden. Murga, the 2014 and 2015 recipient of the U.S. Army Keith L. Ware Award and Thomas Jefferson Award for excellence in broadcast journalism (considered the highest award in the Department of Defense), wasn’t hesitant to recall her military moments. “Not many people understand what a soldier goes through. Especially a female one. And it was therapeutic for me.” She’s also shared written stories. Through her passion for veteran’s and women’s issues, she’s had articles published in The New York Times, The Global Journal , locally in The Morning Call and in the San Jose Mercury News. And she’s appeared on television shows like “Good Morning America” and “The View.” HER BIGGEST CHALLENGE YET? About five years ago, Murga took a leap and moved to Los Angeles, Calif., after a friend of hers joked, “You served in the military, how hard can it be to make it in LA?” It’s not easy. That’s for sure. “Nothing can prepare you for what the industry is like. It’s definitely male-dominated, being only 6 percent women. You have to know who you are and you have to have a point of view. You have to have thick skin. You have to be able to weather it all,” Murga said. “But I’ve lived my life. I have stories to tell.” She does admit that her military time prepared her more than she thinks any other experience could have. “I joke that I prepared for directing in Hollywood by going to war,” Murga said. Currently a participant in the exclusive 2016 –2018 Disney/ABC Directing Program, she shadows directors with the goal of gaining episodic work in television. Only 10 experienced directors on the verge of making it are selected to participate from those applying every two years. It took