Photo By Monica Wood | A smoking casing from a 105 mm howitzer round lands on the ground during Sgt. Lisette...... read more read more
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FORT SILL, Okla. (Oct. 3, 2022) First, she verifies her Soldiers bring her the right round, then she checks the Fire Control Center to ensure her gunner has laid the gun according to the fire mission, and with a sweep of her hand and the command to fire, Sgt. Lisette Ugalde becomes the first female howitzer section chief.
Ugalde, Bravo Battery, has made Fort Sill history by becoming the first female section chief for 2nd Battalion, 2nd Field Artillery Regiment.
Ugalde has been a Soldier for three years and she said she knew early in her career as a 13B (cannon crewmember) that she wanted to be a section chief.
“I had to set myself apart from my male subordinates early on. I had to want it more and train for it more, so I did,” said Ugalde.
Ugalde said training – a lot of training – and repetitions were involved in becoming the first female howitzer section chief in the battalion.
“Training and ensuring that my section was safe the entire time were important to me because my section played a huge role in my qualification,” she said. “I could not have done it without the work they put in every day.”
She certified on Sept. 12, and she fired her first live 105 mm howitzer round on Fort Sill’s West Range Sept. 21, 2022.
“It felt great to fire those first rounds,” she said. “It felt great knowing that all the hard work that my section and I put in had paid off.”
Ugalde had some advice for female Soldiers who want to be a section chief or any other position. “Put the work in. Nothing is going to come easy. If you want it, you must train for it — even on days that you don’t want to,” she said. “You must want it more than everyone else training for that spot.”
Her next goal is to become a smoke or a platoon sergeant on the gunline. “I want to stay in the Army and make the rank of command sergeant major,” she said. “I serve because the Army is bigger than me. I serve to inspire other females — especially in my MOS — to show them that they can do it too.”
Check out more photos of Ugalde firing her first live 105 mm howitzer round at https://www.flickr.com/photos/fortsillcannoneer/albums/72177720302472110.
| Date Taken: | 10.03.2022 |
| Date Posted: | 10.03.2022 16:21 |
| Story ID: | 430626 |
| Location: | FORT SILL, OKLAHOMA, US |
| Web Views: | 39 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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