125 Years of Family Serving Family – Lillian Pena, Tyndall AFB Store Manager

Tyndall AFB store manager Lillian Pena has seen a lot in her 37 year career with the Exchange, as she accompanied her Army husband and family throughout CONUS and overseas.

One in a series honoring the Exchange’s 125 years of family serving family

Tyndall AFB store manager Lillian Pena has seen a lot in her 37 year career with the Exchange, as she accompanied her Army husband and family throughout CONUS and overseas. But nothing could prepare her for seeing the damage to the Tyndall Exchange and Expresses after Hurricane Michael in 2018.

“There was just a sense of loss, numbness and anger,” said Pena, who was temporarily promoted to general manager at the time. “We were all just wondering what was going to happen now.”

In the weeks after the hurricane, Pena and her team worked tirelessly to get the store back up and running, despite the fact that many associates suffered damage to their homes or were displaced. Just six weeks after the hurricane made landfall, the Exchange reopened to a grateful community.

“Nowhere has the Exchange’s core value of family serving family been seen more in action than at Tyndall,” Exchange Director/CEO Tom Shull said at the time. “These associates made many personal sacrifices to be there for Airmen and their families when they needed it most.”

Pena, who first heard about working at the Exchange from an Army wife, says that taking care of customers as if they were her own family is what she enjoys most about her job.

“It is an honor for me to serve those who serve,” Pena said. “They are my heroes, putting their lives at risk on a daily basis. This is why I say that I work where heroes shop and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Pena’s daughter, Zuleika, has followed in her mom’s footsteps and is the Express store manager at Fort Stewart.

“I’m very proud of my daughter and that she has chosen a career with the Exchange. Like me, she is very passionate about what we do on a daily basis.”