![]() In the end, it all worked out thanks to the support of the leaders around me.”īecause of concerns of standards being lowered for female Soldiers, Hopwood said the infantry transition class went above the standards. “But, I was told that there needed to be training plans, and more details before I was able to start planning to go to the transition school. Army was removing the restriction, and I was at the armory the next day to sign up,” she said. “I remember receiving a phone call from an officer from another unit letting me know the U.S. Hopwood, a Philadelphia native, was a Stryker mechanic prior to reclassifying to Infantry. Bonnie Hopwood, a squad leader for Charlie Co., 1-111th Infantry Regiment, was among them. The four NCOs reclassified from other jobs to infantry back in September 2016. There were already three female infantry officers and four female infantry noncommissioned officers in the Pa. National Guard Soldier to graduate from infantry IET, she was not the first female infantry Soldier in the Pa. I did everything that I was supposed to, I did everything the males did, and that final presentation was an amazing moment.”įord is now a member of Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 111th Infantry Regiment, 56th Stryker Brigade Combat Team. “I did it – and I earned it – and no one can say that I did not. “When I had my blue cord pinned on by my drill sergeant, that was a proud moment that I had been working hard for, for six months,” she said. She said IET was very physically demanding, and that made her graduation all the more special. I perform the same work as everyone else.”įord, 22, is a native of New York City and currently lives in Steelton, Pa. My family is proud of me, and I want to be in the infantry. “Being the first female to enlist in the infantry in the PA Guard isn’t what is important to me about this job. “I chose infantry because I wanted a challenge,” said Ford. Tianna Ford graduated from initial entry training at Fort Benning, Georgia, in June, earning the 11B military occupational specialty and the coveted blue infantry shoulder cord. The Pennsylvania Army National Guard recently welcomed its first female infantry recruit into its ranks.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |