Latina Warrior

Bronze Star-decorated combat commander Colonel Lisa Carrington Firmin is pleased to present Latina Warrior, her collection of poems, prose, and art. She shares the trials of not fitting in, surviving sexual assault, harassment, discrimination, leading in combat in Iraq, living with PTSD
and how she has been able to pick up the shattered pieces of her life to emerge stronger, whole, and unashamed.

She outlines her early years as a young Latina growing up all over the world through her oftenperilous journey in the military. She also shares outstanding experiences she had as a leader serving her country, the difficulty of transitioning into the civilian workforce, emerging stronger after divorce, starting her own business, and how writing became her salvation. In Latina Warrior, she weaves her journey in a deeply personal, sometimes humorous, intense, and explicit expression.
Her poetry is an anthem of overcoming barriers to come out stronger, never letting the demons of discrimination, sexual assault, or combat be victorious. She captures, kills, and finally begins leaving behind her pain, shame, and guilt, moving forward with her healing journey.

Latina Warrior is a collaboration with fellow Bronze Star-decorated combat veteran and artist Major Christina Helferich-Polosky, who illustrated the poems with original art. The two veterans have joined together to present their art in a book that expresses their interpretations of one Latina’s journey to emerge stronger and empowered after trauma, hardship, and disability to find her voice to help others as well as herself. Both veterans want others to know they are not alone, that there
is power in art, that there is life after the military, and that one can indeed lessen the burden of multiple traumas. In March 2023, “Invisible Veteran”, one of the poems in Latina Warrior, was featured by the Department of Veterans Affairs in a historic announcement of a new, more inclusive mission statement.