A Black Rose

On April 11, 2018, Sexual Assault Spokesperson, Author of Sole Survivor, Co-Founder of Holly's House and inspiration speaker, Holly K. Dunn will speak to female veterans about her personal journey of PTSD and trauma sustained from her attack in 1997 by the infamous Railroad Killer.ACKSONVILLE, N.C. (PRWEB) MARCH 22, 2018
About one in five women have told their VA health care provider that they experienced sexual trauma in the military. This statistic is found in the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, Women Veterans Healthcare. On April 11, 2018, Sexual Assault Spokesperson, Author of Sole Survivor,Co-Founder of Holly's House and inspiration speaker, Holly K. Dunn will speak to female veterans about her personal journey of PTSD and trauma sustained from her attack in 1997 by the infamous Railroad Killer.
Dunn will be featured in Eastern North Carolina by The Pamlico Rose Institute, Ruth's House, Open Door Community Center and the Arts of the Pamlico for an evening of conversation about PTSD and the effects of sexual assault. "We all have a story, my story gives them a sense of inspiration, and there is life after...we need to remember our women veterans." said Holly K. Dunn
Dunn concluded, "As our nation remembers the victims of sexual assault this April 2018 for Sexual Assault Awareness Month, I am asking our communities, our neighbors, our families, our leaders at the federal, state and local level to recognize the killer next door, sexual assault trauma. This epidemic affects our nation's service members at a greater level that we can't even fathom. Let us use our voices to heal the deafening sound of the invisible wounds of sexual assault."
Dunn's story has been featured by CBS 48 Hours. The episode also highlighted book excerpts from Sole Survivor including Holly's family members and Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority Sisters who were involved during those days. More information can be found at https://www.cbsnews.com/news/48-hours-live-to-tell-the-railroad-killer
About Holly K. Dunn: 
Holly Dunn Pendleton is a survivor, a motivator, and a tribute to the human spirit! The victim of a violent physical and sexual assault and witness to her boyfriend’s murder, Holly has become a beacon of hope and inspiration to many.
Miraculously living to tell her story, Holly motivates others to reclaim their lives after the assault and to help her community build a network of healing and outreach. Holly’s passion to advocate for other victims of violence is extraordinary, and it is this passion that has allowed her and organizations that she is a part of to reach so many people.
Holly’s work includes being the spokesperson for Holly’s House a local sexual abuse and domestic violence advocacy center which she co-founded in her hometown of Evansville, IN. That passion later evolved into her current full-time work as a motivational speaker and trainer, using her own experience and uplifting message to inspire and enlighten.

​As more women serve, more need care post-service
Beltran Steele joined the U.S. Marine Corps at a time when women were just starting to be recognized as a permanent part of the military service.
It was 1950, only two years after Congress passed the Women’s Armed Services Integration Act. The law permitted women to serve as full members of the U.S. armed forces. The positions open to them, however, were severely limited.
“I went in hoping I would get combat training, but in those days it was clerk typist or mechanic,” Steele said. “So while my brothers were in Korea, I was at a supply depot in San Francisco.”
Additionally, as part of the legislation, women could only make up 2 percent of the enlisted force and 10 percent of officers. This limit wasn’t repealed until 1967; and it wasn’t until the military transitioned to an all-volunteer force in 1973 that woman began to see a dramatic increase in the number of military roles they could take on. Even today, women are still striving to fill positions within the military never before held by them.
As it does annually, the Northern Arizona VA Health Care System (NAVAHCS) took the time on Tuesday, March 20, to review this history during an event designed to honor female veterans and those currently serving.
Steele, 86, was one of the attendees of the event. She – as well as every other female veteran in the room – was allotted time to share some of her experience serving in the armed forces.
A key point brought up during the event was that the proportion of women veterans is steadily increasing, and will continue to increase for decades to come.
“Even though there are more males than females in the military, the female curve is going up, whereas the male curve is declining, because a lot of our male veterans are older, and a lot of our female veterans are younger,” said Susan Johnson-Molina, the women veterans program manager at NAVAHCS, at the event.
According to a 2017 Women Veterans Report released by the Department of Veterans Affairs, woman made up 9.4 percent of the Veteran population in 2015. By 2042, that percentage is expected to be at about 16.3.
As this trend plays out, the VA is hoping to meet the needs of those female veterans.
“It’s such an exciting time for the female veteran,” Johnson-Molina said. “But, we also have to be there for female veterans as they come back out. Since they’re going to be experiencing more; it’s going to have more effects on them. We need to be aware of that.”
To help transition this new generation of warriors into the care they need, Johnson-Molina encourages today’s experienced veterans to serve as guides.
“As female veterans, you need to reach out to the younger ones,” Johnson-Molina said. “You don’t have to pitch the VA, but at least make them aware of our services.”
While veterans aren’t the only ones who suffer from ailments related to mental illness, physical debilitation or trauma, their population is highly prone to these issues, Johnson-Molina said.
“Military sexual trauma; big one,” she said. “One out of every four females suffer from military sexual trauma; and we know the number’s a lot higher. That’s just the ones that have come forward to say that. Woman are just starting to find the voice to speak about it.”

By Max Efrein
Originally Published: March 23, 2018 5:55 a.m.