In Savannah, Georgia, a community of veterans has discovered a sense of sisterhood in the Hostess City. The Women Veterans of the Coastal Empire gathered on Saturday at the Mighty Eighty Museum to connect with one another and access valuable resources.
Being a veteran can often feel isolating, and as News 3’s Eden Hodges learned from speaking to local veterans, being a woman in the military can be even more isolating.
Veteran Renea Jones-Hudson remarked, “We face different challenges and some things we can’t discuss with men, so being here and realizing there are so many female veteran organizations offering support, we are all here supporting one another.”
The Women Veterans of the Coastal Empire represented the state of Georgia in a conference for women’s veteran organizations. Suzy Suttle-Willis, the event organizer, says these women are always here for support. “Community, connection, education is at the heart of our organization as well as other women veteran organizations.”
The veterans at Saturday’s event told Eden they came to make connections with others like them and see where they could help others who may be struggling. Aritza Sacaza said coming to the event was very meaningful. “So much power in a woman in the veteran’s community that we’re able to do more for others.”
The group does work within the community as well. Sometimes women veterans may experience an identity crisis when coming back home and are faced with their family duties. They say it helps a lot to have someone who understands. “It’s good for us to have that community – especially with so many of the challenges that we have that we have to work through.”
The Women Veterans of the Coastal Empire meet regularly throughout the year and are always looking for new faces to join them.
