Former Army Pilot Helps Homeless Vets Get Back on Their Feet: ‘What She’s Done for Me Saved My Life’
PEOPLE Susan Keating November 9, 2018
One former Marine, Christopher S.W. Quincer, had lost everything — his job, housing and family — before Snyder found him five years ago in a shelter. “She got me into housing, and paid my first six months rent,” says Quincer, 43. She helped him get a job, reunited him with his family and Quincer now runs a successful company.
Former Army helicopter pilot Deborah Snyder has gone from the cockpit to the boardroom to take on an important mission: finding homes for veterans who don’t have a place to live.
“I don’t think we should have homeless vets,” Snyder, a retired lieutenant colonel, tells PEOPLE. “It’s a fixable problem.”
Since 2011, Snyder, 53, and her organization, the Operation Renewed Hope Foundation, have fixed the problem for more than 800 homeless veterans in the Washington, D.C., area.
“We find housing for them, and help in other ways too,” Snyder says, noting that the organization’s services include help with transportation, jobs and medical services. read more here
Veteran riding bicycle killed in hit-and-run crash in Katy
Click 2 Houston By Brittany Taylor - Digital News Editor, Phil Archer - Reporter October 30, 2018
Lavergne-Profit served in the U.S. Army as heavy equipment operator beginning in 2002, including a tour in Afghanistan. After she returned home she was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
KATY, Texas - A troubled Army veteran was killed by a hit-and-run driver Monday night as she rode her bicycle on a poorly lit road in Katy. Now her family and police want answers.
The crash was reported at 11:50 p.m. in the 2300 block of Elrod Road.
Investigators said Tonashia Lavergne-Profit was riding a bicycle, which was not equipped with the required lighting, in the middle southbound lane when a dark-colored pickup truck struck her. The pickup fled the scene without calling for help, officials said.
Lavergne-Profit was found dead at the scene, officials said. Investigators believe Lavergne-Profit died instantly. read more here
While civilian and military men commit suicide at higher rates than their female counterparts, according to a 2016 VA report, in 2014, the difference between soldiers and civilians was greater for women in all age groups. For young women it is particularly alarming: In 2014, female veterans between 18 and 29 years old killed themselves at six times the rate of civilian women of the same age. Researchers don’t know exactly why so many female veterans are committing suicide, but they have found that survivors of military sexual trauma have a higher rate of suicide than others, and about 20 percent of female soldiers have been victims of such abuse, according to the VA. The study also found that female veterans were more likely than civilian women to kill themselves using a firearm—the most lethal method of suicide.
More than 380,000 women have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, and about 1 in 5 of them return with post-traumatic stress disorder. One unorthodox veterans’ retreat is teaching female soldiers that war has not broken them. In fact, their anguish may be key to their transformation.
First Lieutenant Brie Zeiger tried to stifle her fear as the C-130 transport plane she was riding in began its descent toward Forward Operating Base Salerno in a hostile region of Afghanistan. The base was attacked so often that the soldiers nicknamed it “Rocket City.” Just three months earlier, in June 2012, insurgents had detonated a truck bomb and invaded the base, killing two Americans. As the plane approached the runway, Zeiger heard an odd sound, like pellets smacking a metal target at a fairground shooting game. This was normal, the crew told her, just incoming fire from the Taliban.
Zeiger, then 26, was a nurse in a small surgical unit there. At night, the faintest whir of helicopter blades would jolt her from bed; wounded were on the way. She loved the challenge of the work, the rush of making life-or-death decisions. “I felt like I was doing exactly what I was meant to do,” she says. But in time, she was numbed by the relentless stream of injured soldiers. One soldier arrived riddled with shrapnel from an improvised explosive device. The medical team tried to keep him alive by pumping air in and out of his lungs. Zeiger remembers looking into his eyes, digging through his bloody clothes to find his dog tags, then watching the 23-year-old pass away. “There is something about seeing a soldier die that changes you,” she says. read more here
Riley County police say body of Ashley Meiss, missing since May, found in Ogden
Topeka Capital Journal By Tim Hrenchir October 18, 2018
Human remains found Saturday in the 300 block of North Park Road in Ogden in Riley County have been identified as those of Ashley Elizabeth Meiss, a resident of that community who went missing in May, the Riley County Police Department said Thursday.
The woman’s cause and manner of death remained undetermined, though Riley County Police Sgt. Daniel Bortnick said an autopsy found no indication of foul play.
“A copy of the investigation will be forwarded to the county attorney for review, which is standard procedure in such cases,” Bortnick said. “No further information regarding this case is expected to be released to the public.”
Meiss, a military veteran, was 30 when she went missing from Ogden. She had been separated from her husband, with whom she had two children. read more here
All female veterans have waited too long for equal honor
Combat PTSD Wounded Times Kathie Costos October 13, 2018
First the positive
“The time to act is now” said Paul Rieckhoff, founder and CEO of IAVA in the statement. “The unveiling of the Women Serve monument at Calverton National Cemetery is an important time to recognize and support women veterans.”
VETERANS GROUPS ACCUSE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OF DERELICTION OVER CHANGING VA’S ‘OUTDATED AND SEXIST’ MOTTO
In the article there was this
"More than 345,000 women have deployed since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, according to IAVA. The VA reported last month that in 2016, the suicide rate for women veterans was 1.8 percent higher than for civilians."
Does this mean that older female veterans did not deserve the same from all the other Administrations going back to President Lincoln?
It isn't as if this president came up with the motto, nor did he cause all the problems veterans have been facing since they returned from the Revolutionary War. Ever hear of Shay's Rebellion?
"Veterans had received little pay during the war and faced added difficulty collecting pay owed them from the State or the Congress of the Confederation, and some soldiers began to organize protests against these oppressive economic conditions. In 1780, Daniel Shays resigned from the army unpaid and went home to find himself in court for non-payment of debts. He soon realized that he was not alone in his inability to pay his debts and began organizing for debt relief."
Female veterans deserve more than we could ever repay but again, the way they were treated goes all the way back to the time they decided to do whatever it took to defend this nation...including, when they had to dress like men to do it!
President Trump has made a lot of bad decisions, including pushing to privatize the VA and forcing veterans into the same healthcare the rest of us have to endure. It seems like his advisors have decided they could sell caring for veterans out forgetting they prepaid for all of it. Yet again, the problems our veterans have did not begin with this president. Do women deserve to be treated like veterans? Hell no! None of our veterans should ever be treated the way they have been treated throughout the history of this nation! We need to do the right thing but we need to keep the political BS out of it to actually accomplish it!
Veteran and amputee inspires with each death-defying climb
USA Today
Sheeka Sanahori, Militarykind
Oct. 3, 2018
"The main thing that saved me, saved me from myself, really was my dad telling me, 'You've got to be shittin' me. The enemy couldn't kill you, and you're going to do it for them?'"
Kirstie Ennis is on a mission to become the first female amputee to climb the highest peaks on every continent. She's well on her way to accomplishing her latest mission.
"It reminds you of your resiliency, it reminds you of your independence, it's a fight," Ennis said. "Quite literally an uphill battle and I love it."
Ennis is used to tough battles. She joined the U.S. Marine Corp when she was 17, following in the footsteps of both of her parents.
She was deployed to Afghanistan twice. During her second deployment, a helicopter crash changed her life.
"I lost my entire jaw, my teeth, especially on the right side. And then I just screamed. I screamed mostly out of shock, not pain," she said. "One of the Army medics that we picked up got in my face and told me not to close my eyes again because I wouldn't open them and then everything went black."
Ennis raises money for non-profits from her climbs and from modeling. She was the first amputee to pose for a fundraiser calendar for the nonprofit organization called Pin-ups for Vets, which raises money to help hospitalized veterans and deployed troops. read more here
"M*A*S*H" actress Loretta Swit (second from left) poses with participants in Monday's honor flight for female military veterans at the Women in Military Service for America Memorial.
MIKE THEILER, For the Journal Star (Go to link above for more great pictures)
Women-only honor flight takes 135 veterans from Nebraska to D.C. Lincoln Journal Star JULIE KOCH September 24, 2018
OMAHA — Since 2008, Bill and Evonne Williams have taken more than 3,500 veterans to Washington, D.C., on honor flights.
But Monday's trip to the nation's capital is different. The Patriotic Productions flight consists of all females. All of the 135 veterans are women, as are the volunteers, members of the media and the plane's pilots.
The trip, which is free to the veterans, left Omaha at 4 a.m. The veterans will spend all day Monday visiting military memorials in Washington, including Arlington National Cemetery, the 9/11 Memorial at the Pentagon, the Women in Military Service for America Memorial, the Air Force Memorial, the World War II Memorial and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall.
But before their trip to Washington, the veterans were treated to a dinner at a hotel in La Vista on Sunday evening. The guest speaker was Loretta Swit, who played Maj. Margaret "Hot Lips" Houlihan on the hit TV series "M*A*S*H." read more here
Army veteran mom of 2 dies after being struck by car while trying to protect her kids, officials say Fox News Katherine Lam August 15, 2018
A Texas mother was killed Monday when she was struck by a vehicle while trying to protect three children -- including two of her own -- on the first day of school, officials said.
Kharisma Ashlee James, who was an Iraq War veteran and a nurse, died in the tragic accident in the parking lot of Tippin Elementary School, El Paso Times reported. The 33-year-old was picking up her two children, ages 6 and 7, when a vehicle began accelerating toward them. James jumped in front of her two children and a 10-year-old, officials said. read more here
San Diego veteran with PTSD transforms her body and life CBS 8 News Video Report By Monique Griego, Reporter Aug 01, 2018
SAN DIEGO (NEWS 8) — A local Navy veteran is using fitness to improve her body and mind all while helping wounded warriors. Katelyn Miller, a former sailor battling PTSD, is competing to become the next cover model for Muscle and Fitness Magazine Hers.
Working out with Katelyn can definitely be a little intimidating, but what's even more impressive than her fit physique is what she overcame to get where she is today.
"I got really out of shape when I was depressed and in my bouts of PTSD," she said.
Katelyn looked much different just five years ago.
"Whenever I look back on that, I see a girl that was lost but I also see a girl that had strength in her somewhere," Katelyn said.
Katelyn was enlisted in the U.S. Navy and, at the same time, was going through the aftermath of an extremely traumatic experience.
"When I was on deployment on 2011, I was sexually assaulted," she said.
The incident sent her spiraling.
"I actually tried to commit suicide and ended up in the ward for four days in Washington," said Katelyn. read more here
'Hot Lips' actress from “M*A*S*H” booked for women's Honor Flight event Omaha World Herald By Steve Liewer / World-Herald staff writer July 30, 2018
For the Female Veterans Flight, only women will be onboard. The veterans. Their escorts. The airline pilots. The flight attendants. Even the news media.
Loretta Swit Actress who played Maj. Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan in “M*A*S*H” will speak before flying with vets to D.C.
Come September, an actress who portrayed a female soldier on television for more than a decade will travel to Washington, D.C., with a planeload of Nebraska women who served in the military, for real.
Loretta Swit, who played Maj. Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan in the iconic 1970s TV show “M*A*S*H,” is scheduled to speak at a dinner honoring the 135 female veterans in La Vista on Sept. 23. The Korean War comedy-drama focused on an Army combat medical unit.
Swit, now 80, will join the veterans early the following morning on the first leg of the daylong trip to visit patriotic sites in the nation’s capital. read more here
Female Warriors: Train Your Power PTSD Patrol Kathie Costos June 3, 2018 Earlier this week NPR had a heartbreaking report on female veterans and suicide.
"The suicide rate for female veterans has soared 85 percent in recent years, leading the military, VA and advocacy groups to try new ways to improve women's mental health care during and after service."
That caused me to write about how it was time to put "suicide awareness groups" out of business. Most of them do not know the facts, few focus on the majority of known veterans committing suicide and even less focus on female veterans.
I thought about all the female veterans I've met over the years. Some were suffering but even with that suffering came this survivor attitude that kept them moving forward, doing all they could for others. They trained the power within them so that giving up, settling for what their life was like, was not an option. Think about what would have happened if these women had given up. Primer Magazine, Adam Brewton wrote about the powertrain. Shop Talk: Understanding the Powertrain
"Your car is an integral part of your life and a large investment item. Knowing some basic information will help you better understand what needs fixing when you have to take your car to the shop, and allows you to have a chance at holding your own when your..."
Help veterans stay alive awareness Combat PTSD Wounded Times Kathie Costos May 30, 2018 I read an article early this morning that stuck with me especially when I saw this adorable face! Deana Martorella Orellana, joined the Marines.
"Then, in 2010, she deployed to a particularly combat-torn part of Helmand Province in Afghanistan."
She survived the deployment and hardships, risking her life for the sake of those she served with, but part of it came back with her according to Battling Depression And Suicide Among Female Veterans on NPR May 29, 2018
"After she returned to North Carolina in 2013, her rental home burned down, and a man she knew was charged with arson. She wasn't home, but the incident shook her."
A few months after being discharged, came this "transition" after being trained to serve, tested by Afghanistan, and above all, trained to be "resilient" according to the Department of Defense.
"But just hours after the VA appointment, Deana asked a friend to drop her at the house where she had lived with her boyfriend, who wasn't home. She went in the bedroom and retrieved a .45-caliber handgun."
Since 2009, every member of the military had received "resilience" training to make them "mentally tough."
With all the groups out there raising awareness about veterans taking their own lives, why have they not changed the outcome? They use only the number that will get them the most attention from a report they failed to read, or even take seriously enough to want to make a difference. Actually, it seems as if they have done more harm than good.
"The suicide rate for female veterans has soared 85 percent in recent years, leading the military, VA and advocacy groups to try new ways to improve women's mental health care during and after service."
The military trained them, then refused to change when the result was higher suicides while the number of enlisted went down.
And no one was put out of business for failing to come up with something that would actually help them survive surviving. No one was put out of business raising awareness for something they do not understand, lying about "making a difference" and not even bothering to address the highest percentage of veterans committing suicide, at least the ones they know about, and that is veterans over the age of 50! No news source has been put out of business for covering these people, spreading the lie of how many veterans decided to die or even attempt to ask questions. Questions like why these groups need the money, what they are doing with the money or even why they deserve any of it considering they have not proven anything to anyone. The really puzzling thing is, if they are making their living off talking about veterans killing themselves, then if they lived, these groups would be out of business and their income would vanish. Isn't it time we actually paid attention to these facts? If veterans live, heal and help each other, I may actually get to retire after 36 years and have time to watch TV after working for a paycheck on my day job! You can start by actually reading the reports they didn't bother with. VA SUICIDE REPORT 2012 Limited data from just 21 states VA SUICIDE REPORT 2016 Limited data because states like California and Illinois did not track military service on the death certificates until they passed legislation in 2017 to add it. Also all limited data because, anything less than honorable discharges, did not get counted. Veterans living in other countries were not counted. In some states, if they were not deployed into combat, they were not counted. In some states if they were in the National Guards and Reserves, deployed for humanitarian missions, they were not counted. The factors go on and on, but as long as people are selling suicides, we're never, ever going to make enough of a difference to help veterans survive surviving service. Now, if all that did not bother you enough, consider one more thing. How is it that life mattered so much to every one of them, they were willing to die to save others, but their own life was not worth living?
Sexually abused veteran raises new questions about VA caregiver program WJHL News By: Nate Morabito Updated: May 25, 2018
JOHNSON CITY, TN (WJHL) - A Johnson City woman's experience with Mountain Home VA raises more questions about a Veterans Affairs program already under scrutiny.
The VA's caregiver program pays family members to care for post-9/11 veterans with catastrophic injuries. Kim Coble is one of those veterans. She is a victim of military sexual trauma, according to medical records.
As a result, her husband is paid by the VA to take care of the Army veteran, but both say her mental illness only worsened once they entered the program at Mountain Home last year.
"I was really devastated emotionally," Coble said when we interviewed her on March 9. "I just wanted to end my life."
Those words would haunt her in the coming months.
Lawmakers created the VA caregiver program years ago without clear guidelines in Congressman Phil Roe's view. The House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman (R), TN-District 1, said Congress gave each VA facility too much leeway initially.
"It's being looked at," Rep. Roe said of the increased oversight the program is now receiving. "We need to paint the white lines on the road for it, so this is how you do this."
"It makes us feel like we can't make a difference," Martin said. "Nobody's going to listen. Nobody cares."
"That makes me feel very hopeless and helpless," Coble said.
In the days after that meeting, the veteran said she attempted suicide.
"I just went very numb and I tried to kill myself," she said. "I took almost a whole bottle of pills."
Doctors have since treated and released Coble following her suicide attempt.
Veteran with PTSD alleges sexual abuse at hands of former VA social worker and therapist ABC 7 News By Jovana Lara and Lisa Bartley May 22, 2018
Jackie, who is considered 100 percent disabled by the VA due in part to PTSD from her rape, said she was on five different psychiatric medications at the time. In the beginning, she said she believed their sexual relationship was consensual.
Jackie Baum served six years in the U.S. Army Reserves and trained as a nuclear, biological and chemical weapons specialist.
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Army veteran Jackie Baum's life was spiraling out of control. She was homeless, addicted to drugs and living under a bridge steps away from the VA's West Los Angeles campus.
Jackie struggled with bipolar disorder and PTSD from her rape in the military years ago, both of which were exacerbated by an addiction to pain pills and heroin.
"I didn't think I was ever going to get off of that," Jackie told Eyewitness News. "I just assumed I was going to die that way."
In March 2015, Vietnam veteran and outreach volunteer John Keaveney ran across Jackie under the Ohio Avenue Bridge and captured video of the encounter on his cellphone.
read more here
Tammie Jo Shults, who landed crippled Southwest plane, was one of first female fighter pilots in U.S. Navy NBC News by Elizabeth Chuck and Shamar Walters Apr.18.2018
Navy pilot Tammie Jo Shults in a photo from the 1990s. Courtesy of Linda Maloney
The pilot who coolly landed a Southwest Airlines plane after one of the jet's engines failed and torpedoed shrapnel through a window midflight has gone against the odds before.
Identified by The Associated Press as Tammie Jo Shults, she wasted no time steering the plane into a rapid descent toward safety when chaos broke out shortly after takeoff from New York — maintaining her composure even as passengers reported from the cabin that a woman had been partially sucked out of a shattered window.
“We have part of the aircraft missing, so we’re going to need to slow down a bit,” she’s heard calmly telling air traffic controllers in audio transmissions after reporting the aircraft's engine failure.
“Could you have medical meet us there on the runway as well? We’ve got injured passengers,” Shults then requests.
A air traffic controller asks her if her plane is on fire, to which Shults calmly replies: “No, it’s not on fire, but part of it’s missing. They said there’s a hole, and — uh — someone went out.” read more here
Female veteran's lament becomes powerful song with help from Songwriting With Soldiers project Democrat and Chronicle Gary Craig April 13, 2018
I was just like you when the bullets flewI had your back, you had mine tooBrothers in arms, your sisters covered youDon't that make us your brother too?
Meghan Counihan’s daughter was 6 months old when Counihan was deployed to Afghanistan.
The mother of three, Counihan found herself riven by a tug-of-war of emotions, beckoned by call and duty: one for country, the other of motherhood.
Her uncles were veterans, as was her father, who'd been an Army truck mechanic in Vietnam. The military lineage spoke to her — she, too, would drive a truck for the Army — as did the vows she'd made with others in her Army unit.
“You’ve made this promise to your country, and you’ve made this promise to sacrifice, and you’ve made this promise to these people,” she said.
But at her Colorado home, she had this effervescent infant — still cuddling, still growing, still needing.
“It’s really hard to walk out that door and keep going,” Counihan said. “I was still breastfeeding. To leave when that is going on, you have a physical, visceral reaction.” read more here
The most famous women you never knew Combat PTSD Wounded Times Kathie Costos March 18, 2018 The title is a running joke in Point Man, since that is the way I usually get introduced. Lots of people have heard of my work, my site but most cannot remember my name or even why they know me. Putting this video together made me very proud to be a woman but ashamed I never knew about some of these women. Sure, you heard about Paul Revere getting on his horse to warm about the British coming.
Paul Revere did not gain immediate fame for his April 1775"Midnight Ride." In fact, it wasn't until Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's 1861 poem, which greatly embellished Revere's role, that he became the folk hero we think of today.
But did you know Sybil Ludington also made a ride at the age of 16? Wonder how much fame she would have gotten if Longfellow paid her attention too?
On the night of April 26, 1777, Colonel Henry Ludington, father of 12, veteran of the French-Indian War, and commander of the militia in Duchess County, New York, (just across the state line from Danbury, Connecticut) received a messenger to his house. The British had entered Danbury and found some American military stores, stolen some, destroyed others and drank the whiskey. Drunk, they began ransacking the town, burning and looting.
His daughter got on her horse and rode for 40 miles. You heard a lot about the men fighting for our freedom but did you know about these women? Deborah Sampson, Nancy Morgan Hart or Margaret Corbin? You heard a lot about heroic men with the Medal of Honor but did you know Dr. Mary Edwards Walker received one too? Actually, technically it was twice because Congress officially took it away from her, but she refused to return it. In 1977, she officially received it back, but she died in 1919. Those are just some of the women in this video. I hope you learn something watching it, because I learned a lot doing it.
How much do you know about military women? Combat PTSD Wounded Times Kathie Costos March 6, 2018 A friend asked me to do a video for an event honoring Women's History Month. I figured it would be easy, since it is one subject that I've been tracking for a very long time. What I didn't count on was the other parts of the stories I did not remember.
The number of female veterans over 2 million according to the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Disabled American Veterans has a great report on what these women face when coming home from the same places the males were sent to. Stunning how if a man and women are sitting together, both wearing a service hat, the male is thanked for his service, while folks just assume she must be wearing her's to support him. Another stunner is how a woman can talk about having PTSD but people just think about military sexual assaults instead of what causes it most in males. So here is a bit of history to actually honor females for their service.
Aside from Dr. Mary Edwards Walker, the first and only woman recipient of the Medal of Honor, actually twice. Since Congress took the official award from her, but she refused to give it back, and then President Carter officially gave it back to her, Walker's story is even more impressive! Over and over again, there are more parts to be discovered of the women we think we know about. Women in the Army
A willingness to assume new roles "During the Civil War, women stepped into many nontraditional roles. Many women supported the war effort as nurses and aides, while others took a more upfront approach and secretly enlisted in the Army or served as spies and smugglers. Women were forced to adapt to the vast social changes affecting the nation, and their ability and willingness to assume these new roles helped shape the United States."
One of the first women to serve, had to be crossdressers.
"Deborah Sampson wore men’s clothes, served as a man, fought like a man and was wounded. After she died, her husband received 'widow’s pension.'"
Yes, you read that right. Her husband collected her pension as a "widow" instead of the other way around.
"Nancy Morgan Hart, did more than that. She dressed in men’s clothing and pretended to be a crazy man. She was a spy for the Patriots against British forces."
Still Margaret Corbin wore a dress as she helped her husband load the cannon. When he was killed in battle, she replaced him and fired the cannon. Congress awarded her pension in 1779 for her service and being a disabled veteran. It also made her the first servicewoman in the Army. Fast forward to the Civil War and Dr. Mary Edwards Walker
WALKER, DR. MARY E. Rank and organization: Contract Acting Assistant Surgeon (civilian), U. S. Army Places and dates: Battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861; Patent Office Hospital, Washington, D.C., October 1861; Chattanooga, Tenn., following Battle of Chickamauga, September 1863; Prisoner of War, April 10, 1864-August 12, 1864, Richmond, Va.; Battle of Atlanta, September 1864 Entered service at: Louisville, Ky. Citation: Whereas it appears from official reports that Dr. Mary E. Walker, a graduate of medicine, "has rendered valuable service to the Government, and her efforts have been earnest and untiring in a variety of ways," and that she was assigned to duty and served as an assistant surgeon in charge of female prisoners at Louisville, Ky., upon the recommendation of Major-Generals Sherman and Thomas, and faithfully served as contract surgeon in the service of the United States, and has devoted herself with much patriotic zeal to the sick and wounded soldiers, both in the field and hospitals, to the detriment of her own health, and has also endured hardships as a prisoner of war four months in a Southern prison while acting as contract surgeon; and Whereas by reason of her not being a commissioned officer in the military service, a brevet or honorary rank cannot, under existing laws, be conferred upon her; and Whereas in the opinion of the President an honorable recognition of her services and sufferings should be made: It is ordered, That a testimonial thereof shall be hereby made and given to the said Dr. Mary E. Walker, and that the usual medal of honor for meritorious services be given her. Given under my hand in the city of Washington, D.C., this 11th day of November, A.D. 1865. Andrew Johnson, President (Medal rescinded 1917 along with 910 others, restored by President Carter 10 June 1977.)
Given under my hand in the city of Washington, D.C., this 11th day of November, A.D. 1865.
Yes, you read that right too! She was a POW. You can read more of their stories from Women in the Army Oh, no, I didn't forget about the other branches. History of Women Marines
1953 - Staff Sergeant Barbara Olive Barnwell First female Marine to be awarded the Navy and Marine Corps medal for heroism for saving a fellow Marine from drowning in the Atlantic Ocean in 1952.
1967 - Master Sergeant Barbara Jean Dulinsky first woman Marine to serve in a combat zone in Vietnam. She was assigned to U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam combat operations center in Saigon.
1973 - Colonel Mary E Bane, first female to become Commanding Officer of Headquarters and Service Battallion, Marine Corps Base, Camp Pendleton.
Margaret A. Brewer became the first female Marine general when she was promoted to brigadier general in 1978 and made the director of public affairs. Fifteen years later, in 1993, 2nd Lt. Sarah Deal became the first female Marine to be accepted into Naval aviation training. Five years later, in 1998, Carol A. Mutter became the first woman in any service branch to achieve three-star status when she was promoted to lieutenant general. Prior to the promotion, Mutter had been in command of the 3rd Force Service Support Group in Okinawa, the first woman to command a Fleet Marine Force unit at the flag level.
Loretta Walsh: First Woman to Enlist in NavyLoretta Perfectus Walsh was the first woman to enlist in the U.S. Navy (March 17, 1917) and the first woman to reach the rank of chief petty officer. This opportunity also made her the first woman to serve in a non-nursing capacity in any branch of the armed forces.
In 1862, Sisters of the Holy Cross served aboard USSRed Rover, the Navy’s first hospital ship, joining a crew of 12 officers, 35 enlisted, and others supporting medical care.Red Roverremained the only hospital ship in the Navy until the Spanish-American War.
Over 11,000 Navy nurses served at naval shore commands, on hospital ships, at field hospitals, in airplanes, and on 12 hospital ships. Lieutenant Ann Bernatitus, Navy Nurse Corps, escapes from the Philippines just before the Japanese invaded; she later becomes the first recipient of the Legion of Merit award. Eleven Navy Nurses were prisoners of war in the Philippines from 1941 to 1945; they received the Bronze Star for their heroism.
In 1948, President Truman signed the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act, which allowed women to enlist directly in the military. That same year, the U.S. Air Force let the first female members into its ranks. The first recruit to the Women in the Air Force (known as WAF) was Esther Blake, who enlisted on the first day it was possible for women to do so—65 years ago today. The first commissioner of the WAF was Geraldine Pratt May, who was the first Air Force woman to become a colonel.
Today, the top-ranking woman in the Air Force is Lieutenant General Janet Wolfenbarger, the first female four-star general in Air Force history. According to the Air Force, women make up just 9.1 percent of the general officer ranks. There are only four female lieutenant generals, twelve major generals and eleven brigadier generals.
The American Legion has their first female National Commander, Denise Rohan, and she is an advocate for medical cannabis. The Disabled American Veterans have their first female National Commander, Retired Army veteran Delphine Metcalf-Foster and she was the first female to lead a national veterans group.
