2013 graduates Jeremy Lorenzo-Rivera (above right) and Kwadwo Yeboah-Kankam (above left) started their law school years as strangers. By graduation, they were close friends and study partners. Earlier this year, they added a professional bond: both are now members of the JAG program of the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve.

Each was selected as one of five candidates in his respective year for the branch’s direct commission program for reserves — Lorenzo-Rivera in 2021 and Yeboah-Kankam in 2023. When the latter was considering the possibility, his friend from Richmond Law gave him both advice and a letter of recommendation.

“I basically recruited him,” Lorenzo-Rivera joked.

Much of the work is a good fit with their civilian lives, Lorenzo-Rivera said. He’s a New York City police officer, and Yeboah-Kankam is a senior manager and procurement attorney at PwC. The Coast Guard’s mission ranges from maritime law enforcement to regulatory work protecting marine resources to natural disaster response.

“The culture in the Coast Guard is really good,” Lorenzo-Rivera said. “I’ve had some long days in the Coast Guard, but I’ve never had a bad day.”