FORT HOOD, Texas — International Women's Month is a time to honor women's contributions to history, culture and society. One Fort Hood soldier is sharing her story, even though her path wasn't the easiest.
Sgt. Marwah Molina, 35, has served in the United States Army for four years. Molina was born and raised in Iraq and says she always wanted to be a soldier.
"I moved into the United States when I was 21," Molina said. "Where I was from, it was kind of hard, growing up with the war and everything."
This sparked her passion for wanting to join the U.S. Army because she wanted to give back, especially to her children.
"I wanted to give back as an Arab woman and a Middle Eastern woman," Molina said. "I wanted my kids and my daughters to be able to fight for their freedom. I wanted to set the example for them."
Molina is a tank commander and says she loves every second of it.
"It was very intimidating in the beginning," Molina said. "Now I'm fighting to stay on it."
It wasn't always easy for Molina, especially when she first joined. When she enlisted in 2019, she says there were only about three to four women in the entire company as a combat engineer.
"It was a culture shock to the males," Molina said. "We were one of the first females as combat engineers, we shared one bathroom."
Throughout her time in the military, Molina pursued a college degree and got pregnant in 2020.
"It was hard, but I did it," Molina said.
Now she has seen the progression of the Fort Hood post through her own eyes, even after the death of Vanessa Guillen.
"I've seen a lot of good changes as far as females and women in the military," Molina said. "I see the culture is going to the right place. NCLs actually pull the soldiers to the side to see if there's something wrong. We have that cohesive relationship between leadership."
Molina said she wouldn't change her experience as she makes an impact on children's lives every day.
"It makes me proud of myself, and it also makes me proud of them because they're going to have somebody to look up to," Molina said.
Molina encourages women to face their fears. She says don't be afraid to fail, you will get out of it what you put in.