FORT DETRICK, Md. — Women have a rich history in the U.S. military since the time of nation’s founding. During Women’s History Month, we are highlighting women across the U.S. Army Medical Materiel Development Activity and the contributions they make each day to the Army’s medical development and sustainment missions.
Mingxin Liu was born in Beijing before settling in Fremont, California in 2009. After high school, she earned both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in business administration from Northwestern Polytechnic University in San Francisco before enlisting in the U.S. Army in 2018. As an automated logistical specialist, Liu travelled the world, with duty stations in South Korea and Kansas, and deployments to Camp Buehring, Kuwait and Erbil, Iraq as part of the 339th Quartermaster Company.
After leaving the Army, Liu moved to Virginia and subsequently joined USAMMDA in December 2022. Today, Liu continues her Army service as the USAMMDA hand receipt manager, now as a contractor, ensuring Army supplies and equipment are maintained and accounted for, while managing inventories of issued gear, devices and technologies.
For Liu, Women’s History Month is a chance to reflect on her career as both an Asian American and a female veteran, and to recognize the work USAMMDA’s team of women does each day. Liu recalls her time as a Soldier and credits her experience with shaping how she approaches her role with USAMMDA.
“I served in the U.S. Army for four years, and now I’m using my experience to gain more skills in a government organization,” said Liu. “I take the lead in shaping conversations about people’s careers and encourage them to be as thoughtful and strategic about their family responsibilities as they are about workplace roles.”
Liu says her professional focus as a civilian contractor reflects the drive she gained from her time in uniform, sharpened by the understanding that women leaders are vital to the health of USAMMDA and the Army as a whole.
“I set goals to work on each day, maintain positive relationships in my work and accept new opportunities,” said Liu. “Diversity in leadership positions is mission-critical to the military, or any organization. Diverse groups make better decisions and can decrease racial discrimination as well.”
USAMMDA, which has roughly 100 women in different leadership and support roles, is the DoD's premier developer of world-class military medical capabilities. Located at Fort Detrick, USAMMDA develops, delivers and fields critical drugs, vaccines, biologics, devices and medical support equipment to protect and preserve the lives of Warfighters across the globe.
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