Kelly Hill, a Neumann alumna, is about to become one of the faces of Boeing. The company is producing two television commercials, and Kelly is one of 12 employees who will be featured in the spots.

She and five other Boeing workers were flown to Mesa, Arizona, where raw footage for the finished products was filmed on December 6. Six additional employees were filmed in Seattle, Washington. The trip was hardly a vacation. "After a 15-hour day on set with hair, makeup and multiple takes, I definitely have a new found appreciation for what goes on behind the scene for celebrities," Kelly admits.

Despite the travel and hectic nature of the schedule, she is very grateful for the experience. "The whirlwind has been well worth it," she says, "and I can't wait to see the finished product."

One commercial will begin airing in February of 2017, the second in November of next year. Both will air for 2-3 years after their initial release.

Part of her performance was an interview, during which she was asked about her background, military experience, schooling and civilian career. Other filming captured her in a non-speaking role in which she illustrated a day in the life of a data analyst. Kelly, an IT Business Partner with Boeing in Ridley Park, doesn't know which section of her on-camera time will make the final cut.

When Boeing distributed the casting call for the commercials, it specified that the company wanted veterans as actors. Kelly is a United States Army Reservist, working as an Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer and, at 37, has served for half her life -- 18 and a half years.

Of the 175 Boeing veterans who applied to be in the TV spots, a Neumann alumna who earned a master's degree in Organizational and Strategic Leadership in 2011 was one of the lucky 12.

The commercial isn’t the only time that Kelly was in front of a camera for Boeing. She was featured in the November 2015 issue of the company’s Frontiers magazine in a story entitled “Big Data moves needle for customers” about data analysis work in the V-22 Readiness Operations Center.

According to the company’s website, “Boeing is the world's largest aerospace company and leading manufacturer of commercial jetliners and defense, space and security systems. As America’s biggest manufacturing exporter, the company supports airlines and U.S. and allied government customers in more than 150 countries. With corporate offices in Chicago, Boeing employs approximately 160,000 people across the United States and in more than 65 countries.” 

Editor's note: We will watch for Kelly's commercial and publish a link to it once it airs.