The first Black Army nurse, Susie King Taylor served for the Union during the Civil War, tending to an all-Black Army regiment. Like many African American nurses during the war, Taylor was never compensated for her work. She worked as a laundress and…
Emily (Tatum) Perez, one of two children born into a military family, lived much of her youth in Germany. She returned to the United States in 1998, graduating from high school in Maryland in 2001. Realizing her life-long dream of becoming a soldier,…
Bridgette (Smith) Arnold served 24 years in the Air Force mostly supporting Special Operations Forces and national-level intelligence agencies as a counter-terrorism subject matter expert. After the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Arnold was…
During the Civil War, Cathay Williams lived enslaved at a plantation near Jefferson City, Missouri. The Union Army camp occupied the city in 1861, captured Cathay and other enslaved people and forced them as “contraband” to serve in support roles.…