Sisterhood in Step: Beauties in Boots Women's Veteran Club
Sisterhood in Step: Beauties in Boots Women's Veteran Club
By Cindy Reid
Beauties in Boots Women's Veteran Club is built on connection, community, and shared experiences. These women walk together, serve together, and lift one another up through every season of life.
Based in Savannah, Beauties in Boots brings together women veterans who share a common bond of military service. The organization provides emotional and social support while encouraging members to remain active in their communities through volunteerism, mentorship, and service projects.
Founding President Tresa Hester explains the club's mission simply.
"Beauties in Boots is open to all women who have served or are actively serving in the United States military. We also welcome supporters. We believe in serving our communities, military or civilian."
Did You Know?
Women currently make up approximately 17.9% of active-duty U.S. military personnel, representing more than 227,000 service members across all ranks and career fields.
Among women serving in the military, Black women represent a significant demographic, accounting for nearly 30% of all enlisted women, roughly double their representation in the civilian population. Black women also make up approximately 19% of female officers within the Department of Defense.
Of the nation's more than 2.1 million women veterans, approximately 20% are Black.
While traditional veteran organizations and civilian friendships offer valuable support, many women veterans find something uniquely powerful in connecting with others who have shared similar military experiences. Peer-to-peer networks create a space where women can be seen, understood, and celebrated for their service.
"We call ourselves a club, which is a more modern term for sisters who have a commonality and support each other," says Tresa. "We consider ourselves a tribe."
That support can take many forms. It may mean accompanying a fellow member to a doctor's appointment, celebrating the birth of a child, or standing beside a sister during the loss of a loved one.
A Calling to Serve
Beauties in Boots Women's Veteran Club was founded in 2023 by Tresa Hester and Ebony Elim while they were attending Hope City Church in Savannah.
Tresa proudly served in the United States Army as a medic and medically retired with the rank of Sergeant. Today, she continues her commitment to service as a mortician and death-care professional. She also serves with the National Cemetery Administration as a Cemetery Representative, assisting military families during some of life's most difficult moments.
In 2023, however, Tresa found herself praying about returning to ministry.
One Sunday at Hope City Church, she heard Pastor Tameka say, "I feel a veteran ministry in the atmosphere."
At that moment, Tresa knew God was speaking directly to her.
Later that same day, she found herself standing beside Ebony Elim, a 23-year U.S. Army veteran whose distinguished career included combat deployment and multiple overseas assignments as a Senior Telecommunications Supervisor.
Although they had never met, Tresa recalls feeling a clear sense of direction.
"God whispered, 'That's the one.' I was hesitant at first, but the message came again, 'That's the one who will help you lead the group.' That was the beginning."
What started as a simple conversation quickly gained momentum. By 2025, the organization had officially become Beauties in Boots Women's Veteran Club.
Growing a Tribe
Growth came quickly.
The club's first meeting attracted eight women. Today, membership has grown to more than 70 women veterans and supporters.
"We get the word out by continually being active in the community," says Tresa. "We wear our club shirts and walk in parades. We set up booths at veterans events, volunteer at the YMCA, and maintain a strong online presence."
Chaplain Shirlenia Daniels, a retired Army Logistics Officer with 20 years of service and Executive Pastor at Bread of Life Ministries, first discovered the organization online.
"I first saw the club while searching for veterans groups," she says. "Everything flowed from there."
Today, Daniels serves as both the club chaplain and treasurer.
A Heart for Service
The club operates under a simple philosophy: Service, not being served.
From the beginning, members committed themselves to finding meaningful ways to give back to the community.
Their first major project was a feminine hygiene drive benefiting young women at Park Place. Working alongside Single and Soaring, members collected more than 550 feminine hygiene products to help combat period poverty in the community.
Daniels, who also serves on the West Chatham (Pooler) YMCA Board of Directors, has connected the organization with numerous volunteer opportunities, including Children's Day activities during the past two years.
Members have also spent time mentoring young women at the Georgia Youth Challenge Academy, a military-style residential academy serving at-risk teenage girls.
"We shared our testimonies and showed them a different path," says Tresa. "We also distributed feminine hygiene products, and we repeated that effort again this year."
A major donation of 1,300 feminine hygiene items from Shelly Fickau and the YMCA helped make the initiative even more successful.
Today, the club is planning both an elderly care drive and a baby supply drive.
"So many of us were mothers while serving in the military, often the only woman and sometimes the only Black woman in our units," says Tresa. "We know what that's like. We want to provide clothes, diapers, formula, and other necessities to military mothers who may be struggling."
The Invisible Veteran
One of the challenges many women veterans face is what some call the "Invisible Veteran" phenomenon.
In civilian life, women are often mistaken for military spouses rather than veterans themselves. This cultural blind spot can leave women feeling overlooked within the very communities they served.
Being surrounded by other female veterans provides a sense of validation and understanding without the need to explain or prove their military experience.
Veterans share an immediate bond built on trust, service, and sacrifice.
"Because we spent so many years in the military system, where we're taught that we're all one team and that no one gets left behind, we still carry that desire to serve after leaving the military," says Tresa.
"We know other veterans are trained a certain way. We don't have to figure each other out. That connects us. You served your country, and we still stand together."
These are women who understand the sacrifices of deployment, including leaving children behind while serving their nation. They understand the challenges, triumphs, and realities of military life in ways others simply cannot.
Beauties in Boots provides a place where women veterans can speak the same language, share honest stories, and build lasting friendships with people who truly understand their experiences.
Quite simply, it is their tribe.
Looking Ahead
The group meets twice each month at various locations throughout the Savannah area, including local restaurants, private homes, community venues, and American Legion Post 500.
As membership continues to grow, the leadership team wants every woman veteran to know she has a place where she belongs.
Beauties in Boots is more than an organization. It is a sisterhood built on service, support, faith, and friendship.
The club welcomes new members and supporters and looks forward to continuing its mission of serving both veterans and the broader community.
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