Not a day goes by that I am not reading. But it’s those books, that after I close the cover and I’m still thinking about, that are my favorite. This is one of them. One of the most inspiring women I know, Sara Hammel, authored The Strong Ones, and I learned so much about her, about history, and even more about the political arena with opportunities, or not, for women in the military. This journey turned into one of support and change, and I’m so thankful she wrote this book. This story needed to be told.
The voice is that of the 24-year-old Sara and her story of when she participated in the Strength Study. I had never heard of this study prior to reading Sara’s memoir. Yet there was no social media, no google, no computers, and no internet searches available back in the day so how would I? Without the world’s knowledge, a group of women came together in 1995 for a variety of reasons to participate in a study, to impact change. But in the process they changed their lives and taught everyone the powerful lesson of teamwork. I have thank Sara for writing this book and sharing this incredible story, for so many reasons. There is a deeper lesson about the power of women woven within these pages.
Anyone in business, in aviation, in the flight deck, on sports teams… all say they understand the power of teamwork. However, when placed into a competitive environment men typically compete for power, for success, and to be the top dog. What stood out in this book is the genuine team building strength of women, because they cared for each other. They built each other up, they cheered each other’s success, and downplayed their own. If you are ever in a life and death situation, would you not want to be supported by those who are there for you, more than for themselves? I would. The reason I said “typically” is because I am fortunate to know many men who support others and don’t fit that paradigm, and some women that do.
The Metro West Daily News wrote a great article and posted photos, so I could put faces to the names in the book, and I just found the Strong Ones Book Trailer. Check out those links and then get the book.
The Strong Ones was extremely well written, and while a memoir, Sara shares the pages with her teammates’ stories, and history of the military, policy, and politics. She even followed up with everyone in the study 25 years later. I’m sad the story is over. But it really isn’t. These women did something that will continue to impact the world for centuries to come.
You can find Sara on The Landing. She continues to be an advocate for women and fighting for injustice. If you want to know why she does what she does, and fully understand her strength, courage and secrets of her inner battles, this is a book you will want to pick up: The Strong Ones … How a Band of civilian women made their mark on the Army. Sara is definitely making an impact on the world.
Ironically, I just learned that Dr. Tony Kern interviewed Sara on his Podcast: Only Human-News, Analysis, and Insights from the World of Human Performance and it’s live today. Today’s episode is an interview with Sara Hammel: Exposing Aviation’s Dark Underbelly A great interview!!
