ESS is inspired by the men and women who serve our country and our communities.  The people in our military, law enforcement, firefighters, first responders, and every individual on the front lines who puts the safety of others ahead of their own. Our duty is to create the most advanced protective eyewear on the planet to keep these everyday heroes safe.  We are launching a new series called; ESS Perspectives as our way of sharing an inside look into the lives of the people we are committed to serving.

ESS Perspectives: It is our honor to introduce Retired Command Sergeant Major Brunk Conley, ESS Regional Director of National Guard/Reserve Sales. Interviewed by ESS in May 2021.

CSM(R) Brunk Conley is the first-ever third-generation paratrooper. His grandfather fought in Normandy in the 101st Airborne Division, and his father served in the 82nd Army pre-Vietnam. Fresh out of high school, 18-year-old Conley wanted to follow in the footsteps of his family members. “I told my local army recruiter, ‘I want to jump out of airplanes and do everything the 101st & 82nd does.’ My recruiter told me the 101st wasn’t jumping out of airplanes anymore and instead suggested I sign on to become a Ranger. He explained they were a newer elite group that jumped out of airplanes and did a lot of stuff that sounded interesting too. So I signed up. I couldn’t wait to get home and tell my Dad what I did.” 

Brunk’s father shook his head in disbelief and admiration, then helped him get ready. CSM(R) Conley was one of 33 soldiers out of 150 to finish Ranger training that year. Choosing the easiest path has never been Brunk’s modus operandi.

Brunk Conley attained the highest enlisted Soldier position in the Army National Guard, Command Sergeant Major. His 35-year-long military career includes serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. He led a 15,000-person international Combined Joint Task Force during Operation Enduring Freedom. He was responsible for working with local law enforcement on missions ranging from training the Afghan National Army and Police in Kabul to mobilizing with his battalion to help restore New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.

After 9/11, CSM(R) Conley took an infantry battalion into Iraq and was outfitted through the Rapid Fielding Initiative (RFI). In response to the growing IED problem, it was the first time military eyewear was issued that was above the ballistic ANSI Z87.1 level. Nine months after he got back from Iraq, Conley deployed again to Afghanistan. That coincidentally was the first time he wore ESS eye protection since it was included in his RFI kit.

“When I got my ESS eye pro in Afghanistan, I could immediately tell the difference from what I’d previously been issued. I became a fan of ESS right on the spot,” he says. “There wasn’t a fogging problem and the quality was outstanding.”

He left active duty in 2017 but continues to serve his community as a substitute teacher. He also remains devoted to mentoring the next generation of America’s soldiers and military leaders and is a senior mentor in the Nominative Leader Course (NLC). In that role, he mentors Active Duty, Reservists, and Guardsmen who are among the one percent of NCOs nominated to serve under generals to prepare for that elite level of service. Teaching at the NLC level keeps him at the forefront of what’s going on in the Army, which is both personally and professionally satisfying.

Service and teaching go hand in hand and together, they have been a driving force for Conley. He attributes this to the foundation he received in year 1 of his enlistment. He had an All-Star team of Ranger Leaders in his Rifle Company, many of whom were ultimately honored in the Ranger Hall of Fame. He learned early on what “right” looked like – frequently from the push-up position – and he continues to strive for that quality in all aspects of his life. He reflects, “In retrospective, how could I not take those lessons from some of the greatest Rangers that ever lived and use them in life, marriage, my military career, and also with my peers?”

He decided to join ESS because he felt like, “I could go to my friends and the people I love and want to protect and never feel like I’m trying to sell them less than the best quality product. We come into our job to do what’s right for America’s heroes. We’re doing it out of a genuine place. This is truly about a team.”

Conley protects our country and his loved ones with the highest degree of integrity. His connection to ESS stems from his commitment to serving those who serve. When Conley joined the Army in 1982, there was no standard eyewear included in soldier equipment.

“Early in my career, eye protection was not used or emphasized,” he recalls. He says he was not a gear head, but he remembers when he was a First Sergeant speaking with a supply sergeant who had a set of eye protection allocated for every soldier, and yet the soldiers were not actively provided with that eyewear. The prevailing thought was that the soldiers would lose them or that they’d get dirty. The cases were heavy to carry, but Conley had them distributed. It was an early example of how he always tried to do the right thing and protect soldiers in the field.

A Physics/Chemistry teacher by trade, as he studied more about ESS, Conley appreciated the data and the importance of optical clarity and the physics of distortion. He saw the data from drop tests, impact tests, refraction charts, and understood how those results translated to ballistic protection, as well as with the chemistry behind the anti-fogging technology and flow coat. ESS surpassed all of the performance standards and delivered keen visibility.

Conley points out, “You need to be able to see your target, not just be protected. I also learned the extent of quality control that each pair of glasses goes through at the lab. They’re made in the U.S.A., and every pair goes through an in-house quality audit. I know the glasses the soldiers get far exceed the military standard because each pair has been examined and approved by a person I’ve met and trust.”

Conley has served with honor and his career has been deeply satisfying. Conley counts his blessings every single day. He is humble, but it’s worth acknowledging that senior leaders in the U.S. Army approached Conley for his ability to teach and his deep commitment to service to our country.

“I can honestly say I’ve never worked a day in my life,” he says. “I’ve never gotten up in the morning and thought, I have to go teach. I get to go out in the world and enlighten people. In the Nominative Course, I meet great Americans and help them. I tried to teach my kids this too: When you do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life.”