On one mission in Afganistan, I met with some of the women in Afghanistan. In 2010, I deployed to Afghanistan with the Army as part of a Provincial Recontruction Team. Today I’m sharing part of my experience of when we went to the capital to meet women in Afghanistan. This was originally an email sent […]
Category Archives: Afghanistan
Stories from when I was deployed to Afghanistan on a PRT. Most focus on the different missions I went on as Civil Engineer and a female in Afghanistan
The onset of Female Engagement Teams

Amy Forsythe served on five combat tours as a correspondent and Public Affairs Officer. In 2006, she was part of the first-ever Female Engagement Teams in Iraq. I am excited to share her story this week on the podcast as I have done a lot of research about Female Engagement Teams, but have found limited […]
Earthquake in Afghanistan

I survived an earthquake in Afghanistan during my nine-month deployment. Truthfully, I lived in a tent so there wasn’t much to worry about in terms of what could fall on me. The bed and dressers shook a lot while I was peacefully sleeping. Almost everyone woke up in the middle of the night, but this […]
The Fewer the Prouder Marine Women

Janell was interested in serving in the military and she began her journey to the military through the Civil Air Patrol program. Once she began the Civil Air Patrol, she knew she wanted to serve in the military and set her sights on attending a military academy. Initially, she wanted to attend the Air Force […]
Present Day Women Who Gave the Ultimate Sacrifice

Women in combat is not something new. In 2016, women were formally allowed to serve in combat roles. All jobs were open to all military members. Gender was no longer a discriminating factor. This law-making headline made it so some people believed that for the first time women were going to be allowed to be […]
Weapons System Officer in the Air Force

Vanessa is a Weapons System Officer in the Air Force Reserves. She left active duty when her daughter was born as a dual military, dual service made being stationed together a challenge. In this interview, she talked about the importance of finding your voice and how she helped and helps others find their voice today. […]
When Public Affairs Changed

This post is sponsored by Insure the Heroes. Call Melissa at 1-844-514-LIFE or head over to her website to get a free quote today. This week on the Women of the Military Podcast I talked to Lesley Lykins. She shared her experience of serving in the Navy. She was a Public Affairs Officer when social media became a […]
10 Things Deploying Taught Me
10 years ago, this month, I stepped out of a C-130 and onto the flight line at Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan. I want to share what deploying taught me. The three main reasons I wrote this article was to help you prepare for a deployment, deal with the emotions of deploying and to let […]
10 Things I Learned from Deployment

This week I’m doing a solo episode about what I learned from deployment. I deployed to Afghanistan 10 years ago this month and am celebrating my experience by talking about the 10 things I learned from deployment. You can read the whole episode below or you can listen to the whole episode here. This post […]
A Navigator in the Air Force: From Refueling Missions to Transporting Remains

Samantha Gassman served eight years as a Navigator in the Air Force. She worked as an Air Force Special Operations Instructor Navigator with 1,600 flight hours, 305 of those hours being in combat. During her time in the Air Force, she deployed to Afghanistan and Africa in support of OPERATION Enduring Freedom. She is the […]