Rosetta Burke is a true trailblazer -- serving our country in the National Guard and becoming the first female general. In the next part of our series, 'Facing the Rising Sun: Profiles of Black History,' Tamani Wooley shares how she was able to become a hero for women in the military.
Retired Brigadier General Rosetta Burke believes in doing everything with excellence, whether it's playing the organ at church or serving her fellow servicemen and women or members of the community.
"She is a personal friend, a mentor and an absolute role model in every sense of the word," said friend MaryJo Hughes.
General Burke served in the Army and National Guard. In 1995, she became the first woman ever to receive the ranking of brigadier general, breaking the glass ceiling by becoming the National Guard assistant adjutant general in New York state.
"I felt a sense of responsibility just being me in the first place," Burke said. "So adding the rank to it was icing on the cake, which meant that I had to stand with my shoulders even more squared and be able to talk and bring others along where I dreamed."
The Pittsburgh native grew up with dreams of becoming a nurse. She entered the Army reserves in 1962 to help pay for school. After 30 years in the reserves and working with the Department of Corrections, she retired as a colonel in 1992, then transferred to serve with Adjutant General Michael Hall in the National Guard.
"He wanted to bring children that were heading in the wrong direction in the right direction, and the military was one of the ways that indeed you could do that," she said.
Burke didn't let fear or adversity hold her back.
"I didn't look at the difference of my wearing a skirt or wearing slacks, because I can wear both and depending on my ability," she said.
It's this belief that she strives to pass on to young people.
"Be yourself, look at what you can do, look at your own abilities and improve it if you can," Burke said.
Burke believes it's time military women get the proper recognition for their contributions and opportunities they deserve.
"They have come a long way because there was, once upon a time when I was serving, that they didn't want us to be in the foxhole. Now we're flying the planes," she said. "We're actually getting into the submarines."