By Dr. Debbee August 28, 2025
How does anything begin? Plant a seed, speak a thought, and then with a bit of attention and care, it blossoms. Wilderness Pathfinder Connections had such a beginning with three Veteran women, Maria, Sher, and Debbee, venting about their feelings around inequality, not being taken seriously, or respected for their knowledge and experiences. However, most of the conversation was about commonality in their struggles, creativity, laughter, strengths, and possibilities!
The reality is that as Veteran women, we know inequality, assault, and being left behind. Even with our best efforts, research suggests that in male-dominated spaces, women are more likely to experience overt and subtle biases that affect overall well-being (Begeny et al., 2020; Son Hing et al., 2023). On top of that, it feels that in our competitive, comparative, racist, capitalistic, and patriarchal society, the constant messages of not enoughness prevail. What can we do? I find that I can always take compassionate action in the community. In that action, nature and self-care come first, followed by family and community. Then we can unite as Veteran women to design an all-women's organization.
We found our strengths as a team are complementary, yet not the same, which makes us more whole as a board. With excitement, we collaborated on a name, Wilderness Pathfinder Connections, for our organization, as well as our vision, mission, and purpose. Sher led the way, beginning the non-profit process, creating our webpage, and assigning roles. We want to make a space that addresses the inequalities and biases, embraces the knowledge of nature and ancestors, while supporting, accepting, and embracing the strengths of Veteran women, just as they are, who happen to be wilderness rites of passage guides or want to become one. With the focus on growing individual strengths into an empowered collective community with incredible opportunities, while cultivating nature-based practices and ceremonies to inform leadership and mentoring for Veteran women to collaborate.
And so, our action begins, and our path is guided by vigor and passion as the Earth and ancestors hold us. We take ourselves seriously, and in lightness, our opportunities are blessings, and we respect one another for our wealth of knowledge and experiences. In the end, everyone is genuinely doing the best they can do with the ideologies they have; all we can do is our best to provide our family, friends, neighbors, and nature with connection, integrity, and support while uplifting one another. The future is hopeful and bright if we can embrace Earth and one another.
Begeny, C. T., Ryan, M. K., Moss-Racusin, C. A., & Ravetz, G. (2020). In some professions, women have become well represented, yet gender bias persists—perpetuated by those who think it is not happening. Science Advances, 6(26). https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aba7814
Son Hing, L. S., Sakr, N., Sorenson, J. B., Stamarski, C. S., Caniera, K., & Colaco, C. (2023). Gender inequities in the workplace: A holistic review of organizational processes and practices. Human Resource Management Review, 33(3), 100968. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2023.100968