Women Injured in Combat

Zaneta Adams remembers the frustration of being immobile due to an injury she received while serving in the army.

“As you have learned, I am a busy person,” Adams said to WKTV volunteer host Meochia Thompson during a recent interview for the WKTV Journal newscast. “I like to do a lot of things and having an injury that caused me to be immobile and be in a wheelchair and not be able to be myself was physically and emotionally devastating.”

In 2009, things would change for Adams who attended a retreat, Challenge Aspen, that focused on women veterans.

WKTV volunteer Meochia Thompson is with WINC Founder and President Zaneta Adams. (WKTV)

“I went and there were women that had amputations and a lot of different aliments,” Adams said. “Their husbands had left them and a different array of things, and they were making things happen. Here I was ‘Whoa is me” and I had my legs and so, I said we need to make these work.”

Adams learned how to walk again. Not only that, but she founded WINC, an organization designed to give all women veterans a space to come together.

“WINC stands for Women Injured in Combat but the organization is not just for women who were injured, in the traditional sense, or in combat, in the traditional sense,” Adams said. “We look at that all women have gone through training, basic combat training, and we have all kinds of different injuries whether they be physical, mental, emotional or spiritual. Pretty much any woman who has served in the military is welcome to be apart of the exciting things that we do.”

While founded in 2014, the organization has made an impact on legislation for women veterans locally and statewide with Adams admitting that she hopes to one day have a national day set aside for women veterans.

“That day is not about singling out women or saying that we are better than males,” Adams said. “It is basically bringing attention back to the fact that we serve just like men do and we have issues that we need to be addressed.”

WINC offers a number of programs including scholarships, workshops, and retreats. Most recently the organization hosted its HER2 Award, which honors those who are honoring, empowering, encouraging, or restoring persons in the military. Both individuals and organizations are recognized.

For more information about WINC, visit wincforall.com.