Episode #83 - Wonderful Women IN UNIFORM Wednesday – We celebrate First Black Female Brigade Commander 21 Years Old Sydney Barber and Philadelphia’s First Black Female Firefighter Battalion Chief 39 Years Old Lisa Forrest (BLACK LADIES IN UNIFORM BEING THE 1ST). Both women had two different career goals before they landed in these historic roles, and both care about giving back to the community and making a difference. They are perfect examples of uplifting little girls into believing they can break the gender barrier.
At age 21, Sydney Barber who grew up in Lake, Forrest, IL will become the first Black woman to serve as brigade commander at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. She hopes to ‘open the door’ for those behind her. 'I Have The Heart To Do It'. She is quoted as saying in a recent interview "I never wanted to join the Navy growing up," she said, laughing. Her father is a graduate of the Naval Academy, and Barber said, "Everything, everywhere, any time, was all about Navy this, Navy that." She wanted to "write her own path" but kept returning to her "drive for wanting to pursue a career of service, no matter what I did. I wanted to give back to the world."
At age 39, Lisa Forrest grew up in Mount Airy and attended Penn State to study nursing but left after a year to join the Army. Six months into her service, Forrest was sidelined by an injury and honorably discharged. At 4-foot-10 and 99 pounds when she entered the Philadelphia Fire Academy in 2003, Lisa Forrest faced scrutiny from some male cadets and instructors who doubted her ability. She responds by saying “But they didn’t know I came from a strong family and a strong line of women.”
Sydney grew up in Lake FORREST and we're celebrating Lisa FORREST look at that commonality! WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY? LINKS BELOW FOR: APPLE, GOOGLE, PANDORA, AND SPOTIFY.
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ladiespromotingtransparentadvocacy/id1526382637
https://open.spotify.com/show/5x7xSxWi2wj2UXPsWnZ0cw?si=peGax6j6SIumBT5tq7_hhg
Sources: Black Enterprise, CBS Morning News, The Daily Pennsylvania, CBS Philly Channel 3, CW Philly 5 (Justice & Misunderstanding Series), The Philadelphia Inquirer, https://www.firehouse.com/, CNBC.com, npr.org, (NPR Interview with Mary Louise Kelly)
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Org. Email: Ladiespromotingtransparentadvo@gmail.com
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