GoldenBison b
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A newsletter for Nichols College alumni of the past 50 years or more
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Vol 3 Issue 1: Winter/Spring 2022
Redefining What Impossible Means Nichols graduate Charlie Cunnion ’06 reflects on his career of military service and international logistics. Charlie Cunnion ’06, vice president of global transportation at International Forest Products, LLC (IFP), majored in both finance and economics while at Nichols College.
D
uring his time at Nichols, he was
opportunity to volunteer to serve with his
exposed to the Army Reserve
future company commander whom he met
and felt called to serve his
while training at Fort McCoy.
country. “I joined the Army Reserve between my freshman
Cunnion served in Iraq between 2008 and
and sophomore years. That
2009, while the economy was collapsing,
summer I went off to bootcamp in
and he came home to a difficult job market.
Missouri — a non-traditional
“I ended up working odd jobs in construction
summer break for a 19-year-old!” Returning
and was given the opportunity to bartend at
to Nichols, Cunnion enjoyed the dynamic of
Sinni’s Pub — owned by alum Jeff Sinni — a
being a college student and serving the Army
favorite bar for Nichols students.” Eventually
part time. In his junior year he joined an
a friend of a friend put him in touch with
ROTC program offered through Worcester
a headhunter who was looking to fill a job
Polytechnical Institute and continued to be a
at International Forest Products, LLC. He
full-time student at Nichols. “My senior year I
applied and was offered a position. “The job
didn’t feel the stress of finding a job like many
was as an operations specialist, which was
of my peers. I already had my commitment to
somewhat of an inside sales administration
the Army, which was a relief. The Army laid
role. I took it as a way to get my foot in the
out a plan for me.”
door, and I’m grateful I did. I was responsible for account coordination, logistics, finance
Cunnion started his career with the Army
and accounting. It was a great way for me to
at Fort Sill in Oklahoma then went on to
learn the business.” In this role, Cunnion
Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland for
discovered that he wanted to grow his career
Army officer training, followed by a stint at
in the transportation and logistics side of
Fort McCoy in Wisconsin. “My first year in
the business.
the Army was between 2006 and 2007. The Iraq war was starting to hype; this was right
About a year and half into the job at IFP,
before the surge happened. It was clear that
Cunnion was offered a promotion to be a
General [David] Petraeus had a plan to quell
part of the logistics team; at the same time,
the insurgency. It was obvious as a young
he was called to serve as a member of the
officer that my path to Iraq was imminent.”
Army Reserve. Cunnion had to put his
Cunnion shares that he was lucky to have the
promotion on pause and was deployed to
Charlie Cunnion is pictured at the Patriot Place headquarters of IFP, part of the Kraft Group of companies founded by Robert Kraft. Afghanistan, now as a commander. “I had a successful deployment, more good days than bad,” he reflects. “I always remember turning 24 in Baghdad. As with any young officer or military leader, I was given a tremendous amount of responsibility at that age. My first deployment was cutting my teeth, developing a leadership style, understanding urban warfare, the logistics of war. This deployment was about understanding people, keeping them motivated and the energy positive.”
Continued on page 2
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