JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas –
With the month of March being Women's History Month, Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph is celebrating "women of character, courage and commitment" - this year's national theme, through several events.
The first event is March 7 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., where a montage of posters honoring women in the past and present as well as door prizes were set out at the JBSA-Randolph Housing Community Center, building 144. Women's health information was also provided.
To get youth involved, Randolph Elementary third-, fourth- and fifth-graders are encouraged to participate in an essay contest describing a contemporary or historical American woman using the 2014 theme. Submissions, 500 words or less, are due March 21.
A team-building obstacle course called the JBSA-Randolph Warrior Challenge is planned from noon-3 p.m. March 28 at the Rambler Fitness Center field. Four-person teams will compete for first-, second- and third-place prizes. The entry fee is $10 per team.
A luncheon 11 a.m.-1 p.m. March 31 at the Parr Club will conclude the month-long celebration with guest speaker Mary Saunders, retired Air Force major general, who was selected as the Texas Woman's University Leadership Institute's executive director to prepare young men and women for positions of leadership.
Essay contest winners are invited to read their work at the luncheon.
"It's important for us (in the military) to recognize women's history, not only because there are now more combat roles for them, but they are as capable as ever," Senior Master Sgt. Demetrice Webb, JBSA-Randolph Women's History Month Committee president, said. "Women are becoming individuals as opposed to being confined to a gender."
Military forces continue to be defined by women who are more educated, equally paid and who have opportunities for leadership positions, Senior Master Sgt. Felica Young, JBSA-Randolph Women's History Month Committee vice president, said.
"They are more vocal, more present and better able to express themselves in today's world, whether it's in the classroom or in the workplace," she said. "Men still make up the majority of the military, but there's no question that women can make the same decisions as men and have just as much impact or more."
To view a complete listing of events, visit
https://randolph.eis.aetc.af.mil/902msg/olb/EO/whm2013/default.aspx.
For essay submission and more information, email Webb at 652-9467 or Young at 652-3169.