435th MDG commander inspires at Women's History Month observance

  • Published
  • By Christine June
  • U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern
KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany --  Col. Angela Thompson wanted to inspire, encourage and enlighten those attending the U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern's National Women's History Month observance March 28 at the Armstrong Community Club on Vogelweh Housing.

She did just that for several of the Kaiserslautern Middle School Girls' Club who attended the event as a field trip.

"One of the girls came up to me and said, 'I'm going to be president of the United States one day,'" said Colonel Thompson, 435th Medical Group commander and the event's guest speaker. "What an adorable young lady. These girls (at the event) were inspiring for me because they really are our future, and I was very delighted to see them there."

Alexandra Forzato, 13, and Audrey Price, 12, both KMS seventh graders and Girls' Club members, said they learned more than they knew before they walked through the door.

"Her speech was really great - really educational and inspirational," said Alexandra.
Close to 20 members were at the event as a culmination of some of the topics they learned at club such as creating a first impression, table manners and self esteem.

"Our whole main goal is to expose these girls to mentors and what better place than an event that honors women - past and present," said Jennifer Goodman, a member of the Kaiserslautern-Landstuhl Spouses' Association, which sponsors the KMS Girls' Club.
Each member also had a job to do from greeting and escorting guests to checking coats.
"It was kind of fast, but I liked greeting people," said Angelina Lindsay, 11, KMS sixth grader and Girls' Club member.

Celebrating visionary female artists, this year's national theme was "Women's Art: Women's Vision."

Using the theme as the title, Leonardo Williams, a garrison Directorate of Human Resources administrative technician, produced a five-minute video production for this event.

"I wanted to educate and at the same entertain people on how vital women have been and continue to be in our lives," said Williams, who volunteered to do this production.

Another highlight of the event was a Women's History Month trivia game - "Who wants to be an EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) Millionaire."

"This is my favorite part - the fun stuff," said Selinda Torbert, the garrison's Army Community Service outreach coordinator who was the master of ceremonies for the event.

Each year since 1987, March is designated as National Women's History Month to recognize and celebrate the multi-cultural history of American women in schools, work places and communities throughout the country.

"The Knowledge of women's history provides a more expansive vision of what a woman can do," said Colonel Thompson in her speech. "This perspective can encourage girls and women to be visionary - to think larger and bolder - and can give boys and men a fuller understanding of the female experience."