From the Marine Corps to Metro: Veterans who keep LA moving 

Veterans Day has passed, but at Metro gratitude continues all year. With 573 veterans working across the agency, service doesn’t stop when the uniform comes off – it simply evolves. Whether operating trains or guiding new operators, supervising security teams, or keeping our bus fleet moving, veterans bring discipline, leadership and heart to everything they do. Here we honor three Metro employees who once served in the United States Marine Corps and now carry that same commitment to serving Los Angeles.

Yolanda Tillie Duran didn’t grow up dreaming of the military, but she always wanted to work in law enforcement. “I wanted to help people, fight crime and be a good pillar in the community,” she says.  A persistent recruiter and a good test score helped her secure the military police role she hoped for.  

She arrived at boot camp athletic, but the mental demands were the hardest. “They train you to go to war, to take decisions fast that help you and your peers stay alive,” she says. Her training toughened her and prepared her for a future where quick decision-making would become essential.  

At work as military police in Yuma, Arizona, she responded to domestic disputes and armed individuals. After the attacks of 9/11, “we knew we were going to war,” she says. Yolanda deployed to Iraq for nearly a year as part of a FARP (Forward Arming and Refueling Point) unit, working perimeter security to protect combat helicopters to be refueled near the front lines.  

In Iraq, she faced moments that shaped her. One time her Humvee was attacked by enemy fire. “We had to band together and make the best decision possible to get out of that situation,” she recalls. “We had to make sure everyone was safe.” This experience sharpened her instinct.  

Her service also helped her grow personally. “The military helped me to be more vocal,” she says. “I felt more confident and to lead better.” Being a woman along her path brought challenges too, but “the Marines taught me to adapt and overcome.” It’s a lesson she carries everywhere.  

Today, as a newly promoted sergeant in Metro’s Transit Security Department, Yolanda supervises more than 30 Transit Security Officers (TSOs) on the overnight shift along the B Line. She coordinates with local authorities and Metro operations teams, checks on officers and ensures safe closures and reopenings at the stations.  

Her leadership philosophy is simple: communicate clearly, be firm but fair and treat officers with respect. Pride fills her voice when she speaks about her team and the support she has felt from the agency. “Metro has helped me enormously,” she says. “The agency is very diverse, committed to equity and very supportive of veterans’ careers.” 

Another Marine veteran who keeps Metro moving is Mike Gallegos, now a Bus Maintenance Superintendent who oversees roughly 500 employees. 

Mike joined the Marine Corps at 18 to support his family and build a better path. He served eight years as a mechanic deploying throughout Asia — Japan, Philippines, Thailand, Hong Kong, South Korea and Sri Lanka — and spent seven months in Saudi Arabia during Operation Desert Storm. 

Being away from home was hard on his family, as he was the only boy of four siblings — and for Mike, who was close to them. Still, he found strength in the brotherhood around him. “The camaraderie and friends you make while you’re in the military really helps you to get through it,” he says. 

But the experience that shaped him most wasn’t the deployment — it was as a leader. In Okinawa, he met a Marine named Sargeant Rivera, who maintained cryptography machines used to decipher codes. “He talked when he needed to, and when he said something, it had a purpose,” Mike recalls. “He made sure we were always taken care of, fed and had a place to sleep.” Riveras’ consistency reshaped Mike’s understanding of what it meant to lead.  

That philosophy guides him now at Metro. As Mike oversees several teams across bus maintenance, non-revenue fleets, instruction, electronic communication technicians, he tries to embody the same steady presence he saw on Rivera – someone who ensures his team has what they need to succeed.  

For Mike, taking care of people also means building trust, helping them improve and leading by example. “We have a mission at Metro,” he says. “To move our customers around the city.” It’s why he reminds every new maintenance employee that the work they do directly support riders who depend on Metro every day. 

Working on the rail side of Metro, there’s Marine veteran Donell Dean, who joined the Marine Corps after high school. “A few of my friends signed up, so I went to talk with the recruiter.”  

He served three years in infantry, stationed in Hawaii and deployed across Asia. During his reserve years, he trained to be a cook, serving more than 2,000 people a day. The Marine taught him discipline, teamwork and focus.  

Donell joined the agency as a bus operator in 1988 — when Metro was still Southern California Rapid Transit District (SCRTD) and later transitioned to a rail. Today he operates primarily on the A Line and also trains new operators. “I believe in giving the best of it,” he says. Something he learned during his own training at the Marines, “If you are going to do something, do it good. If not, then don’t do it at all.”   

Another thing he learned during his training was to connect with other guys he didn’t know anything about. The military gave him a sense of belonging and taught him that even when you don’t get along with someone, you can make it work to get the job done. “That’s the first priority,” he says.  

Each of these Marines who become Metro employees reminds us that transit is also public service. As Mike shared, “It’s another way to serve the public. Is another way to give back to the country that has given us so much.” If you are a veteran exploring your next mission, Metro is hiring and we’re always looking for veterans and the experience and leadership they can bring to the job. For listings, please visit www.metro.net/about/careers/veterans/