Dog Tag Diaries

Summary: What happens when two women veterans turn pain, fear, and hope into a movement for healing? In this heartfelt Season Seven episode of Dog Tag Diaries, Captain Kimberly reunites with her co-founder and sister in service, Captain Dakota, to share how their podcast and nonprofit were born. Together, they reflect on overcoming imposter syndrome, burnout, and self-doubt while building a safe s...

Summary: What happens when the life you built to survive no longer fits the woman you are becoming? In this powerful episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Captain Kim sits down with Air Force veteran, author, intuitive guide, artist, and life architect Behati Hart. Behati shares her journey from growing up on the South Side of Chicago in a strict and chaotic home, to joining the Air Force for freedom and s...

Summary: What happens when the strength that helped you survive starts keeping you from truly living? In this heartfelt episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Captain Kim sits down with Army veteran, author, and women’s healing mentor Felicia Hammond . Felicia shares her powerful journey from growing up in Liberia as a firstborn daughter with adult responsibilities, to homelessness in the U.S., military ser...

Summary: What does it mean to stand at the edge of history and be trusted to tell the story? In this powerful episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Captain Kim sits down with Amy Forsythe, a Marine veteran and retired Navy Lieutenant Commander with more than 30 years of service. Amy shares how growing up in Northern California, playing sports, and hearing her family’s military stories led her to the Marine...

Summary: What happens when your dream job becomes the place where you have to fight to be believed? In this powerful episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Captain Kim sits down with Rachel Cuda, a former undercover CIA officer, military contractor, Navy SEAL daughter, and SEAL spouse. Rachel shares what it was like growing up in the military community, marrying back into the SEAL world, and stepping into h...

Summary: What happens when service becomes more than what you do and starts shaping who you are? In this heartfelt episode of Dog Tag Diaries, Captain Kim sits down with Shelley Rood, a former U.S. Army Intelligence Officer, speaker, and creator of the Wildflower Assessment. Shelley shares how 16 years of service, a painful discharge, faith, motherhood, and her love for women veterans led her to b...

Summary: What if art is not optional, but one of the tools veterans need most to heal? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Captain Kim sits down with Navy veteran, artist, and Veteran Art Venue founder Phyllis Thomas to talk about creativity, service, healing, and purpose. Phyllis shares how her love for art began as a child in Watts, how her parents helped grow that gift, and how she carried it...

Summary: What does it mean to rebuild your life after service leaves you with both pride and pain? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Captain Kim sits down with Navy veteran Yuri Acuna, whose story moves through family, military service, survival, healing, and purpose. Yuri shares what it was like growing up in a Mexican-American home shaped by love, culture, and the lasting impact of her father...

Summary: What does it mean to step into roles that were never designed with you in mind? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , we sit down with Colonel Mary Fuller, U.S. Army Retired, whose 28-year career reflects a pivotal era of change for women in the military. Entering service during the “last of the WACs,” Mary moved into positions that had only recently opened to women and helped shape the st...

Summary: What happens when a veteran’s service is questioned, her trauma is dismissed, and healing feels out of reach? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , host Captain Kim welcomes back Navy veteran Didi Meindok for a powerful conversation about truth, survival, and recovery. Didi shares her experience serving during Operation Desert Storm, the pain of military sexual trauma, and the long fight t...

Summary: In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , host Captain Kim sits down with Army veteran Makissa Lewis for a deeply honest conversation about service, survival, and sisterhood. Makissa shares her path from Jamaica to New York, then into the Army right out of high school, where she hoped to prove she was stronger than people expected. She opens up about surviving military sexual trauma before the...

Summary: In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , host Captain Kim welcomes back Navy veteran, leader, speaker, and now author Jenn Donahue . Jenn first appeared on the podcast sharing her military journey and leadership story. Since then, she has turned some of her hardest lessons into a new book, Becoming a Warrior: Harnessing the Power of Self-Doubt . In this conversation, Jenn opens up about the r...

Summary: In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , host Captain Kim welcomes back Navy veteran, advocate, and author Leah Stiles. Leah first appeared on the podcast sharing her journey through military service and life beyond the uniform. Since that conversation, she has transformed many of those experiences into a powerful memoir, Battle Scars & Body Wars. In this conversation, Leah reflects on th...

Summary: What does it feel like to put the uniform back on when your life at home has changed so much? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Dakota Olsen-Harris returns to the show for an honest talk about getting ready for her third deployment, this time as a wife and mother of five. She shares how this season feels heavier in new ways, especially with a toddler at home and older kids she will be...

Summary: What happens when a woman spends nearly two decades in uniform, then has to figure out who she is without it? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries, former Captain Ashley Miller shares the long road that took her from a horse-loving small-town girl in Missouri to enlisted soldier, Army officer, intelligence professional, disaster responder, and now licensed clinical social worker. Her story...

Summary: What does healing look like when years of silence finally break? In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries, Val Fogelsang shares the road that took her from a curious, outdoorsy homeschool kid in Texas to an Army combat medic, OR nurse, forensic nurse, and podcast host. Her story is honest, painful, funny, and deeply human. What started as a childhood dream of serving in the military became a li...

Summary: What happens when the uniform comes off after 30 years of service? For retired U.S. Army Reserve Colonel Kimberly Moros , it meant discovering a new way to lead. In this episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Kimberly shares the journey that took her from a curious, competitive kid in Arizona to a senior military leader and eventually into civic leadership. What began as a simple visit to an ROTC o...

Summary: What does military service look like through the eyes of both a mother in uniform and the daughter who grew up alongside it? In this heartfelt episode of Dog Tag Diaries , Amy Almond-Schmid and her daughter Macynn Schmid share an honest, multi-generational conversation about life shaped by military service. Amy joined the Air Force at just 17 and built a 26-year career serving across acti...

Summary: What makes a 16-year-old decide, within 24 hours of 9/11, to dedicate her life to serving her country? In this powerful Season 7 episode of Dog Tag Diaries, Cait Conley shares her journey from a working-class childhood in New York’s Hudson Valley to West Point, six combat deployments, and senior national security roles at the White House and Department of Homeland Security. Cait opens up...

Summary: Melissa Washington returns to Dog Tag Diaries for a powerful refresher conversation that blends reflection with real-world strategy. Since her first appearance in Episode 9, her organizations have grown into nationally recognized platforms supporting women veteran entrepreneurs, leaders, and changemakers. In this episode, Melissa shares how Women Veterans Alliance has evolved, why Women V...

Summary: In this episode, we sit down with Kimberly Mitchell, a resilient veteran and transformational leader whose journey spans military service, leadership development, entrepreneurship, and personal healing. Kimberly opens up about growing up in a single-parent household with four siblings, navigating loss at a young age, and discovering her strength and curiosity early in life. She shares how...

Summary: What happens when two women veterans turn pain, fear, and hope into a movement for healing? In this heartfelt Season Seven episode of Dog Tag Diaries, Captain Kimberly reunites with her co-founder and sister in service, Captain Dakota, to share how their podcast and nonprofit were born. Together, they reflect on overcoming imposter syndrome, burnout, and self-doubt while building a safe s...

Summary: This is another inspiring episode of Dog Tag Diaries Season Seven, where host Captain Kim welcomes Marine officer, mother, and advocate Dr. Jessica Bradley, LtCol, USMC (Retired). Jessica shares her remarkable journey from a small-town Oregon girl inspired by a Vietnam War documentary to becoming one of the first women in her unit to serve in combat operations during Operation Enduring Fr...

Get ready for a second tour of Dog Tag Diaries episode featuring Dani Shine, a Desert Storm Army veteran, retired RN, and author of “The Weight of Hidden Wounds.” In this moving conversation, you’ll hear teasers about her remarkable journey through military service, overcoming the weight—physically and emotionally—of trauma, and the challenges women face in the armed forces. From surviving combat...

Ever wonder what happens when trauma meets resilience—on both the battlefield and back home? Dog Tag Diaries brings you a special second tour episode with Didi Meindok, Navy veteran, attorney, and medical scientist. Hear about the struggles women face during military service, from being “erased by paperwork” to facing unimaginable challenges like military sexual trauma and moral injury. This episo...