Combat Ready, Miss Kansas Presents New Possibilities As a Female Role Model, Citizen Soldier Getty images With a confident raise of her combat boot Miss Kansas, Sgt. Theresa Marie Vail, shattered stereotypes and gave an entirely different visual to the 2014 Miss America Parade spectators that playfully chanted, ‘show us your shoes!’ Think of all the pageant queen hopefuls that never thought that military issue ACU’s (Army Combat Uniforms) would be a crowd cheering fashion statement on a boardwalk parade best known for glitter and glam! Kansas Army National Guardsman Vail is as real as it gets. The blond beauty and Army sharpshooter has hit the bulls eye of awareness on her social platform, “Empowering Women, Overcoming Stereotypes and Breaking Barriers.” A victim of bullying as a young child, one look at the confident woman she has become provides hope and inspiration for girls and women struggling with self-esteem issues. She is a role model for the military’s slogan “improvise, adapt and overcome.” Comfortable in her own skin, she was the first women to display visual ‘ink art’ that include a prominent tattoo of the ‘serenity prayer’ on her right side and the insignia of the U.S. Army Dental Corps (Vail aspires to be a military dentist) on her shoulder. “I am who I am,” she admits, “tattoos and all!” Pageantry and parades, aside, Vail can be credited with bringing a new visibility to America’s Citizen Soldiers of the National Guard and Reserve who place ‘service above self’ and wear the uniform in defense of our safety and freedom. Chief Master Sergeant Dan Mitchell who is the President of the New Jersey State Enlisted Association of the National Guard (EANGUS) was thrilled to see a Citizen Soldier join the other contestants on the catwalk. “Miss America pageant has for many years followed a cultural pattern that has created a specific image of women and beauty,” he offered. “It is so refreshing to see that Miss Kansas has challenged that pattern and opened the eyes of so many others demonstrating strength and beauty in service. That Citizen Soldier should be very proud of herself. I know I, as a National Guardsman hold a sense of pride in what she has represented to all of America.” The last decade of continuous combat and historic natural disasters has tested our reliance on Guard and Reserve members and their employers, revealing both group’s’ willingness to make extraordinary sacrifices for the good of our country. The National Guard and Reserve forces provide wartime military support. They are essential to humanitarian and peacekeeping operations, and are integral to the Homeland Security portion of our mission. Sgt. Vail has taken an oath to not only be true to herself, but to be loyal to her country and those she serves. That’s you and I - the over 99 percent of American’s whose freedom is protected by the less than 1 percent that wear the uniform. A “Jill of all trades” Vail, is also a skydiver and boxer, an archer, a marksman, a hunter, an aspiring pilot, speaks Chinese fluently and most importantly, Vail is an American Hero. If you’re going to break tradition, you might as well do it with “shock and awe!” An impressed spectator remarked, “Miss Kansas can kick some butt!” More likely, she’ll save your life. Hooah!
Posted on: Wed, 18 Sep 2013 02:39:48 +0000
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