Women Veterans Initiative | Stars & Stripes NOVA Committee

Who We Serve

•     Women veterans of all eras, branches, and discharge statuses

•     Women currently transitioning out of military service

•     Women service members in the National Guard and Reserve

•     Military spouses, caregivers, and surviving family members (note which of these you formally serve)

•     Based in Northern Virginia, with virtual options where available
 

Our Services

Every woman’s path is different. Our services meet you where you are, with no cost and no judgment.
 

Peer-to-Peer Support

Connect with other women veterans who have walked a similar road. Through one-on-one matches and group sessions, our peer network offers a confidential, judgment-free space to share experiences, reduce isolation, and build the kind of camaraderie that made service meaningful.
 

Career Transition Coaching

Translate your military experience into civilian career success. Our coaching helps you reframe your skills for civilian employers, build a resume and LinkedIn presence, prepare for interviews, and connect to hiring partners and training pathways in the Northern Virginia region.
 

Life Transition Coaching

Service shapes identity, routine, and purpose. Life transition coaching offers a supportive, structured space to set goals, rebuild stability, and move forward with clarity, covering everything from establishing new routines to navigating relationships, wellness, and personal growth.
 

Women Veteran Entrepreneurs Community Group

Turn your drive and discipline into a business of your own. Our Women Veteran Entrepreneurs Community Group is a supportive circle for women veterans who are starting, running, or dreaming up a business, a place to swap ideas, solve problems together, find accountability partners, and celebrate wins. Members get warm introductions to the funding, training, and certification pathways that can be hard to navigate alone, from federal contracting set-asides to small-business grants and mentorship programs built specifically for women who have served.
 

Sisterhood Socials & Networking

Sometimes the most powerful support is simply being in a room with women who get it. Our regular socials and networking events build the friendships and professional connections that make civilian life feel less isolating, low-pressure, welcoming, and fun.
 

Wellness & Mind-Body Healing

Healing isn't just mental; it lives in the body too. Our wellness offering creates space to reduce stress, reconnect with yourself, and build resilience through movement, breath, and somatic practices led by people who understand military life. No experience required, and every body and ability level is welcome.
 

Financial Wellness & Benefits Navigation

Financial stability is one of the strongest foundations for a confident next chapter. We help women veterans understand and access the benefits they've earned, build practical money skills, and connect to trusted resources, turning a confusing system into a clear plan.
 

Family & Caregiver Support

Many women veterans carry roles at home as well as a service record. This offering supports the whole person and the people who count on her with resources for parenting, caregiving, and family wellbeing, plus the simple gift of connecting with others balancing the same load.
 

Mentorship Program

Be matched with, or become, a mentor. Our structured mentorship pairs women veterans for goal-focused, one-on-one guidance, whether the goal is a career move, a business launch, finishing a degree, or simply finding footing after service.
 

Resource Navigation

You shouldn't need a map to find the help you've earned. Resource Navigation is your single point of contact for cutting through red tape, we listen to what you need, then make warm, personal introductions to the right VA services, benefits, and community organizations, and follow up to make sure you actually got connected. Whether it's healthcare, housing, food security, or a crisis you're facing right now, you won't be handed a phone number and left on your own.
 

How It Works / Getting Started

1.    Reach out — Contact our Women Veterans Initiative lead (below) by phone, email, or the form.

2.    Talk it through — We’ll have a short, confidential conversation to understand your goals and match you to the right support.

3.    Get connected — Begin peer support, coaching, or resource navigation at your pace.
 

Point of Contact (POC)

Women Veterans Initiative Lead

•     Name: Rosemarie M. Hirata

•     Title: Strategic Advisor & Women Veterans Initiative Lead, Stars & Stripes NOVA Committee

•     Email: rhirata@hiratagroupllc.com

•     Phone: 785-317-1656

•     Preferred contact method / hours: Email anytime; calls Mon–Fri 9–5

Rosemarie M. Hirata serves as Strategic Advisor to the Stars & Stripes NOVA Committee, where she leads the Women Veterans Initiative. A combat veteran, Rose spent more than two decades driving transformation across the Department of Defense and has contributed to DoD and Department of Veterans Affairs program evaluations, reports to Congress, and strategic policy initiatives. She is the founder of Hirata Group, LLC, a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned and Women-Owned Small Business, and of Unfolding with Rose, a coaching practice that guides individuals through life transitions and personal growth. A coalition builder and problem solver at heart, Rose brings that experience to one clear conviction: no woman who has served should navigate the road to civilian life alone.
 

Our Partners

In partnership with Hirata Group, LLC, a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned and Women-Owned Small Business providing coaching and program support and the Committee’s broader network, including the Virginia Department of Veterans Services, Women Giving Back, the Center for Veterans in Transition, Warriors Ethos, and Cornerstones.
 

Crisis Resources

Call to Action / Get Involved

•     For women veterans: Connect with the Women Veterans Initiative today → [contact link]

•     For volunteers & mentors: Become a peer mentor or volunteer → [link]

•     For donors & sponsors: Support women veterans in Northern Virginia → [donate link]

•     Newsletter / events: Stay in touch, upcoming women veterans circles and events → [sign-up link]
 

Women Veterans: A Proud History

Women veterans have played a crucial role in the U.S. military since the American Revolution, facing real obstacles and breaking barriers to serve their country with honor and distinction.

Watch a short historical overview of women's service: Historical Overview (video).

Early Contributions

Historical roots: Women's service in the U.S. dates to the American Revolution, when some disguised themselves as men to fight. Their contributions were too often left out of the historical record.

World War II: The Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), established in 1942, was a major step, allowing women to serve in non-combat roles. Even so, women veterans of that era did not initially receive the same benefits as their male counterparts.

Legislative Milestones

Women's Armed Services Integration Act (1948): This pivotal law allowed women to serve as regular, permanent members of the military across all branches, though early restrictions included caps on female personnel and limits on combat roles. It was signed on June 12, 1948, now observed as Women Veterans Day.

1980 Census: For the first time, women were officially recognized as veterans, with 1.2 million reporting military service, spurring greater awareness and equal-access efforts.

Challenges and Progress

Access to benefits: Studies in the 1980s found many women veterans were unaware of their eligibility for VA services, prompting advisory committees and outreach initiatives to improve access and care.

Modern era: After September 11, 2001, more women served in combat roles, and women now take part in every aspect of military service, while facing unique challenges, including higher rates of certain mental-health conditions and military sexual trauma.

Current Status & Outlook

A growing community: Women are a significant and fast-growing share of the veteran population, projected to reach about 18% of veterans by 2040, and continue to work for full recognition and equal access to healthcare and economic stability.

Women Veterans Day: Observed each year on June 12, commemorating the 1948 Women's Armed Services Integration Act and honoring women veterans throughout history.

Spotlight: Women in Combat & the Army Intelligence Corps

Two threads of that history deserve a closer look, and the linked historical overview brings many of these stories to life.

Women in combat: For generations, women served close to the fight. The ground-combat exclusion was lifted in 2013, and by 2016 every combat role was open to women. In 2015, the first women earned the Army Ranger tab, and today women serve across the infantry, armor, artillery, aviation, and special operations.

The Army Intelligence Corps: Women have served with distinction in military intelligence for generations, from the thousands of Army codebreakers at Arlington Hall in Arlington, Virginia during World War II to today's Military Intelligence Corps. Their analytical work has shaped decisive moments in our nation's history, often without public recognition.

Right here in Northern Virginia, that legacy runs deep, and it lives on in the women this Initiative is proud to serve.
 

Resources & Support Networks

Purpose: a trusted, at-a-glance starting point for the benefits and community women veterans have earned.

Women veterans make up a rapidly growing share of the veteran population — over 16% of active-duty service members and about 10% of veterans. The resources below can help you access what you've earned and find your people.

VA Resources for Women Veterans

The VA Center for Women Veterans (established 1994) advocates for women veterans' access to benefits, services, and opportunities through education, outreach, and collaboration. Key supports include:

Healthcare: Specialized care for women veterans, including Military Sexual Trauma (MST) services, intimate-partner-violence support, maternity care, and PTSD treatment.

Financial & readiness: Disability compensation, VA home loans, the Women Veteran-Owned Small Business Initiative, life insurance, and pension.

Education & employment: Transition and economic-development programs, readiness training, and employment services.

Mental health & burial: Access to PTSD and MST-related care (without discharge review in some cases), plus pre-need and burial eligibility.

Women Veterans Call Center: 1-855-829-6636, or email 00w@va.gov.
 

Virginia Support

Virginia Women Veterans Program (VWVP): Serves over 4,500 women veterans; Virginia is home to one of the highest concentrations of women veterans in the nation.

Virginia Women Veterans Week (March 15–21, 2026): Features a Recognition Ceremony at the Virginia War Memorial in Richmond — theme “She Leads the Legacy: Trailblazers in Motion.”

Women Veteran license plate: Available for purchase to support the program.
 

National & Global Networks

WoVeN — Women Veterans Network: A sisterhood offering local and national groups, peer leadership, and events to build community and support.

Women Veterans Alliance: a global hub for events, resources, and advocacy, including the Women Veterans Engage 2026 conference — womenveteransalliance.com.
 

Advocacy & Awareness

Organizations like the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) spotlight the unique challenges women veterans face and advocate for gender-specific services, such as reproductive health and specialized mental-health care.

Tip: If you're a woman veteran, start by enrolling in VA benefits and services, connect with a local or national network, and join state or national recognition events to strengthen your support system.