#VeteranOfTheDay Army Veteran Fallon Williams

Fallon Williams served for nearly 14 years, including two Iraq deployments, prior to her current position as LGBTQ+ Veteran outreach coordinator at the Washington, D.C., Mayor’s Office of Veterans Affairs.

Growing up in rural Georgia, Williams learned about the meaning of service from her grandfather, a World War II Veteran and sharecropper. “He didn’t have access to the USDA and other resources, and he didn’t want me to go into that life,” she said.

Williams joined the military at 17, serving in the Army National Guard from 2002 until 2007. She went active duty in 2008 and deployed twice to Iraq, working mostly in construction-related fields.

While on active duty, Williams reclassed from HVAC tech to the medical field. She served as a psychiatric technician supervisor and later as a behavioral health training programs manager at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

At Walter Reed, she assisted with managing the inpatient psychiatric unit and witnessed the effect of military trauma on service members. She recalled working with a Marine Veteran who had tried to harm himself. “You end up being of service to them, in whatever capacity you can at that time, while still managing their safety and others as well,” she recalled.

Williams left the service in 2016. She continues to serve Veterans as the owner of various agricultural programs, as a case manager working with housing insecurity and as a district-level specialist serving LGBTQ+ Veterans in the nation’s capital.

Recalling her grandfather’s experiences as a Black WWII Veteran under segregation, Williams said it was important for everyone to have the right to live a full life.

“When I was in the service, I had to live double lives [under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”],” Williams said. “I couldn’t be a lesbian and a service member. I had to be one person in the uniform and a different person outside.” She believes it’s important for all Veterans to feel comfortable speaking up so that discrimination “doesn’t become the norm.”

“She’s passionate about the LGBTQ community,” said Army Veteran Mojisola Edu, an advocate who helps Veterans and their families navigate life after the military. “She’s ‘boots on the ground’ for their needs.”

Though the law preventing open LGBTQ+ service ended in 2011, Williams said the trauma remains.

Those discharged under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) may be eligible to have their DD214 and their service discharge upgraded to honorable, but Williams pointed out trauma endured prior to separation needs to be addressed as well. Otherwise, LGBTQ+ Veterans could be reluctant to apply, fearing “bringing up the past and being retraumatized,” she explained.

As coordinator, Williams facilitated a DADT panel where LGBTQ+ Veterans and allies could discuss their experiences serving under the policy and the work that still needs to be done. 

“She’s a powerful leader,” Edu said. “And I look forward to her continued leadership fighting for the rights and the voices of the underrepresented.”

We honor her service.

Writer: Philip Van Slooten

Editors: Marisa Bunton, Cate Manning

Researcher: Philip Van Slooten

Graphic Designer: Saul Leon