Kara Wynn

Early Life (2357-2376)

Wynn was born in 2357 on New Orithea, a small and remote Federation colony near the Arbazan system, not far from Deep Space 11. She was born to Miriam Wynn, a terraforming engineer and Jonas Wynn, a xenobotanist. Her parents were among the early settlers who helped shape New Orthiea’s society. Growing up in this tightly knit community showed her the opportunities that lie in close collaboration. Federation citizens of all heritages had lived and worked side by side, sharing knowledge and adapting to the challenges of the planet’s environment. From an early age, Wynn showed a knack for bringing people together, often mediating disputes among children of the colony.

Despite these achievements, life on New Orithea was not easy. Resources were limited and she had to step in early to help with the household and child care of her younger siblings in order for her parents to help maintain the colonie’s infrastructure. Wynn learned early that survivng and thriving depended on empathy and cooperation.

When Wynn turned 17, a devastating accident occured in the colony. A terraforming reactor malfunctioned and caused a severe explosion, which claimed the lives of five settlers. One of the victims was Wynn’s uncle Gavin. The aftermath of the accident was chaotic with the colony struggling to recover physically and emotionally. Wynn stepped in under the tutelage of the colony’s part-time counselor Telas Vernai to help care for those in need of emotional support. She became a confidante for many, not only her younger siblings, listening to their stories and helping them to process their grief and doubts.

Starfleet Academy (2376-2382)

Despite the strains of an upbringing on a Federation frontier colony, Wynn valued this life. However, the skills that made her such a vital part of the colony also revealed the limitations of staying there. With the support of her parents and her mentor Telas Vernai she came to the understanding that Starfleet was not a rejection of her colony, but a chance to explore her potential.

At Starfleet Academy, Wynn brought with her the lessons she learned on New Orithea: The value of community and the belief that no one should stand alone. These values made her the glue of many relationships that she fosters to this day and it set the cornerstone of the officer she became today. She graduated Starfleet Medical Academy with a degree in counseling after six years.

Early Career at Starfleet Command (2382-2385)

Despite wanting to explore the stars, Wynn liked the amenities of a life on Earth and decided to remain at the counseling services of Starfleet Command specializing to help visiting officers cope with the mental and emotional stress of deep-space exploration. It was here where she met her future husband, Dr. Rylan Wynn, during a joint seminar on xenopsychology. Their shared passion of understanding the complexities of alien cultures and what brought them together as a society and as a part of the Federation sparked a friendship that would soon evolve to marriage.

USS Elysium (2385-2392)

In 2385 Rylan was assigned to the USS Elysium. The ship’s mission profile included transporting Federation ambassadors to diplomatic negotioations and first contact missions. This profile required a dedicated counseling team to support not only the crew but also the diplomats in their negotiations. This allowed Wynn to follow her husband aboard the ship and become part of a crew that she did not leave for several years. It was here that she was promoted first to lieutenant and then to lieutenant commander.

In 2387 Wynn gave birth to her first and only son Evan. He remained onboard with her and Rylan. She was thankful for the Elysium’s peaceful mission profile and the opportunity to raise a family while fulfilling her duty as a Starfleet officer.

During a particularly tense mission of the USS Elysium the bridge officers were incapacitated by an environmental anomaly. Wynn, as the highest-ranking-officer stepped in to take command of the vessel. While she could draw on her counseling expertise and the foundations that her upbringing had set, she was able to de-escalate the situation.

This experience mad Wynn realize that her skills were an asset in commanding a vessel. She saw leadership as a new opportunity to make a difference and decided to take the Bridge Officer’s test and attend command school.

USS Celestial (2392-2402)

After passing the necessary tests, Wynn was promoted to Commander and assigned to the USS Celestial.  Rylan and her son remained onboard the USS Elysium as the family felt that the Celestial was not a good fit for a child. It took Rylan countless nights to persuade his wife to take this opportunity. Family was the most important thing in Wynn’s life and it was the hardest decision of her life to leave her family behind for a greater call. Rylan and Evan visited their mother on countless opportunities – sometimes for weeks at a time – during more peaceful missions. To this day, Wynn is thankful to the Elysium’s Captain T’Varen to make this possible.

The USS Celestial was assigned to high-profile missions involving first contacts, major defensive operations and important scientific missions. As a first officer, Wynn was valued for her nurturing attitude. She saw her crew as family and embraced the core values she had once learned on the barren outpost she called home.

When the Celestial’s Captains retired in 2398, Wynn was promoted and given command of the vessel. After two years as her commanding officer Wynn received the message that would change her life. Evan and his father were aboard a civilian transport on their way to visit Wynn on the USS Celestial when the transport was attacked by pirate raiders. While Starfleet responded swiftly, her son died in the attack. To this day the identity of the pirate raiders was unknown. This threw Wynn into a long period of grief. Only a year later during the Borg attack on Frontier Day, Wynn’s husband Rylan was among the victims of the attack.

USS Riverside (2402 – present)

Being thrown into this long period of grief, Wynn saw herself unable to tend to a crew under the circumstances the USS Celestial experienced on her high-profile missions. She thought about retirement, but decided that she needed some form of distraction. After countless discussion with the admiralty and Starfleet counseling services, she was allowed to take command of the California-class starship USS Riverside. She remains under close supervision of the ship’s counselor who needs to report to Starfleet about her condition regularly.