Continental Color Guard welcomes Soldier

After more than a decade in the Army and multiple deployments, Staff Sgt. Miranda Smith is adding another accomplishment to her resume: member of the Continental Color Guard.

Smith, a native of Philadelphia who celebrated her 12-year "Army-versary" in January, enlisted in the Army in 2004. She was looking for purpose and the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, had a profound effect on her, she told the Pentagram.

After deployments to both Iraq and Afghanistan, Smith landed duty with the 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), where she's been stationed for the last two years. And just recently, Smith passed the training to become a member of the Continental Color Guard, the first female Soldier to do so.

The Continental Color Guard represents the Army by presenting national flags at visits and events across the nation, including dignitary arrivals, ceremonies and wreath-laying ceremonies.

"Pretty much every mission, unless I'm marching with somebody [who] outranks me, I'll carry the national colors," Smith said. "You're also calling the commands for the team."

The platoon requires a rigorous training process that includes hill sprints, a 10-mile run to the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., rifle tests, runs with the flags and much more.

Though it was tough, Smith said she was determined to complete the training and earn the post.

"Everybody knew that I was going; I told my whole chain of command," she said. "The whole time I was just like, 'I can't go back and tell these people that I didn't make it.' And by that time I knew that if I passed I'd be the first female."

Smith noted that other female Soldiers have attempted the color guard training process.

"I'm the first one to make it through the training cycle," she said. "It's pretty cool. It's kind of surprising that it's 2016 and nobody's ever made it."

And Smith loves her new platoon.

"It's pretty awesome," she said. "It's great working with a group of people [who] like what they do. They volunteered and worked [hard] to get in, and they're always seeking to be better. It's cool to see civilians. They always think it's a big deal to see us in our uniforms carrying these flags."

When asked if she had any advice for fellow female service members, Smith urged them not to put limitations on themselves.

"There's no limits to what you can do," she said. "I know personally, in my career, I was never told I couldn't do anything, but people would emphasize how hard it is. It's up to you to set your own limitations, not what somebody thinks you're capable of."

For more information about the Old Guard, visit www.oldguard.mdw.army.mil/regiment.

Pentagram Staff Writer Guv Callahan can be reached at wcallahan@dcmilitary.com.