“Tell Your Story!” is the U.S. Army Women’s Foundation history program.  This program the uses the guidelines established by the Library of Congress Veterans’ History Project (VHP) and in support of the U.S. Army Women’s Museum, a VHP partner.  Women’s military experiences  have been underreported and often ignored.  The aim of this program is to correct this oversight and to record as many stories as possible of Army Women past and present.  If you are serving or have served in the Army we want your story!   Click here to access the form you can complete and submit online.  Click here to access the form you can download and mail in.  Tell us about your service and let us know if you’re willing to do an interview. 

 Why is your story important?  Women have been involved with armies from the very beginning.  Early roles included nursing, cooking, clothing and equipment maintenance, and the provision of food and other items.  The stories of these early women are largely lost, though there are hints in the Bible, and legends and folk tales remain.  Archeological digs in the past few years have revealed women buried with costly military equipment that strongly suggests their active participation in war.  Perhaps the legends are true.

 Did you know that the British Army of the 17th and 18th centuries actually had slots authorized for women?  Did you know that General George Washington wrote about the difficulties that the Continental Army had in recruiting and retaining nurses?

 Have you talked with an older woman veteran?  Has she told you “I didn’t really do anything important.”  Don’t believe it!  Both her story and yours are important!   Every person’s experiences, whether exciting or routine, provide a unique record of service.  If we don’t record our experiences they will be permanently lost.

 The Foundation’s oral history program began in the 1970's, a few years after our founding.  The program concentrated on interviewing veterans who attended the biannual reunions, then held at Fort McClellan, AL.  About 200 interviews were recorded on video tape.  Many of these offer priceless insight into the wartime experiences of World War II, Korean era, and Vietnam veterans. 

 This year the Foundation has initiated a new program to greatly increase the number and variety of oral histories recorded.  While we want to take advantage of our older veterans, we also want to get the impressions of women serving now, including those who have been in Iraq, Afghanistan, the Balkans or on other overseas deployments.  Women today are in combat – there is no inherent safety in rear areas or in support or logistical units.  Everyone is vulnerable and the casualty lists confirm that Combat Support and Service Support areas are often very dangerous places to be.  Everyone has a story to tell.

 Our goal for this year is to increase the number of oral histories that we record by at least 500%.  We’ll continue to conduct oral history interviews at our biannual reunions, and in addition, we’re planning to branch out beyond this to other communities. 

Download the form to mail in

Photo courtesy of U.S. Army