[Three of Seven]

Lights keep flickering and curtains keep shaking, perhaps I should do something about the latter two, but for the former, time will always progress, the one thing that we know will keep going. This is a very long winded way of me saying that today marks my third year as part of the UFP, I realise not many people post about their anniversaries, admittedly, I skipped my second year. It's nothing more than a way for me to say thanks to you for keeping me around and for me to celebrate another year as part of this community.

I could tell you the history of how I joined the UFP and all such, we all have a story to tell with this I am sure and may you share it, allow others to hear (or read!) your triumphs, goals reached and anything else you can be proud of. I think the thing I take away most from my time within the UFP is the wide range of people I have met and the friends I have made. If I look back to my first year, I was still just using text chat within TeamSpeak, then I bought a headset and slowly built up from there! Now, I can still ramble on with a story, but these days, real talk is far easier!

When I came into the UFP, I only ever intended to hang around a game and play, maybe take up a small role but I ended up in a fairly large role! I would never have seen myself get this far back then, not for a lack of vision but because at the time, I didn't really know what to expect. Volunteering has its highs and lows with any community but I've certainly picked up and developed some skills that I would not have had initially. I am a strong advocate of people getting involved, a lot of people also enjoy their roles, especially if you are doing it in an area you enjoy.

But all I really want to say is, here's to many more years, not for me, but for everyone! Personally, I like to hear other peoples stories about how they got into the UFP and what they have enjoyed, rather than more waffle from me, you guys should share your stories!

[Taeran]

Congrats on your third year anniversary and hopefully many more to follow!

[Daedalus]

...but... but... your waffle is so entertaining. Congrats on 3 years with the UFP Three, it's been an honor serving with you.

As far as my own story goes, I have a pretty extensive history with another Star Trek group that some of you may know. The Galactic Foreign Legion (GFL). I became aware of the UFP during the first days of STO when I was browsing recruitment threads on the official forums one day and looking for a few well-designed group websites.

Although I had already formed my own fleet as one of the founders of The Underground Alliance, I bookmarked this site and came back to read the Herald several times until my existing fleet fizzled out. At that point, all of my fleetmates had moved on to other games and the introduction of fleet holdings meant I would need to find a larger and more established group if I wanted to obtain access to fleet resources going forward.

I've been with the UFP for a little more than 2 years now, and it certainly has been a fun and interesting ride so far! I've made a lot of friends here and am happy to give back to the community that has given me a home.

[LynxMukka]

Congratulations Three on the Three years.

It is surprising at how quickly the years creep up on you but so long as you're always enjoying it here, then it makes it worth it.