Lindsey Schmidt spent nine years in the Army, including deployments to Iraq where she worked alongside Green Berets as an Arabic linguist and interrogator. Now the Virginia resident is featured in the 2027 Pin-Ups For Vets calendar, a fundraiser that photographs female veterans in vintage, World War II-style pinup portraits.
The calendar, produced by the California-based nonprofit Pin-Ups For Vets, includes 13 female veterans from around the country. The organization was founded in 2006 by Gina Elise, who has said she drew inspiration from actress Betty Grable, whose wartime pinup photo was widely distributed to American troops during World War II.
“The whole reason I even joined the military was because of ‘Saving Private Ryan,'” Schmidt told Fox News Digital. “So it was a full-circle moment to go back into that World War II era. And it’s so great to see a spotlight on female veterans in this way, especially highlighting femininity.”
Schmidt said the experience carries added meaning given how little space for femininity often exists in uniform. “I know a lot of us don’t feel super feminine when we’re in uniform, but to be a part of this group of women who are so accomplished and have been through a lot of obstacles and challenges, it’s really special to be a part of it,” she said.
Joining After 9/11
Schmidt said she had always been patriotic, and after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks she decided to serve in what she called “the war of my generation.” She trained as an Arabic linguist and interrogator, though Arabic wasn’t her first choice. “I actually wanted to learn Russian first,” she said. “I thought Russian just sounded cool. But it was 2002, and we needed Arabic. So I went with Arabic. And I’m so glad now that I did.”
Breaking into a deployment wasn’t simple. “Initially, I wasn’t even supposed to go on deployment. They told me no many, many times, but I am persistent and creative. I found a way to get myself onto the deployment,” Schmidt said. “And there were definitely mixed reactions. Some of them saw the value in my skill set. Some of them just thought it was more risk than it was worth.”
She recalled blunt hostility from some soldiers. “Some of them told me to my face, ‘You don’t belong here. We don’t want any females,’ which isn’t fun to hear, but I appreciated that because at least I knew where I stood with those guys,” she said. “I kept my head down. I worked hard. I didn’t cause any drama. And after a little while, the guys that were opposed to having me there, they all came around eventually.”
Earning the Name ‘Xena’
Schmidt deployed to Iraq as the only woman in her battalion. One soldier who had initially opposed her presence borrowed her helmet and returned it hours later with “Xena” painted across the back, a reference to the fictional warrior princess. She later learned the nickname had spread among troops after they saw her accompany Green Berets, known as ODA teams, on missions while many others stayed at the forward operating base.
“Being the only female to accompany the guys on the missions, it was an adventure,” Schmidt said. “It felt very validating to be able to go out as one of the team members.”
Her role on those missions relied on cultural dynamics the male soldiers couldn’t navigate. “I would go out on missions with the ODAs, those are the teams of Green Berets, and they separate the women and children from the men,” she said. “And our guys, culturally, are not able to talk to the women. And so, by having a female on the objective, I could speak to them, and I could ask them about their husbands and what’s really going on behind the scenes and gather intelligence that the guys would not have access to otherwise.”
Iraqi women she encountered were often surprised to find an armed American soldier who spoke fluent Arabic. “They just started rattling off Arabic, asking me a million questions,” Schmidt said. “There was a lot of curiosity, a lot of hesitance. But I think they may saw that, ‘Hey, if you talk to me, I can help your situation. If you don’t talk to me, there’s nothing I can do for you.'”
A Memorable Interrogation
One interrogation still stands out to Schmidt. She had witnessed a detainee’s capture while in full combat gear, hair pulled tightly back. Later, in civilian clothes inside the interrogation room, the same man failed to recognize her as he told a story she knew was false.
“That’s not how you were detained,” she told him. “Tell me the truth.”
He smirked in response. Schmidt then pulled back her hair. “Imagine no hair,” she told him. “Imagine me in uniform. I was there.”
She said his expression changed instantly as recognition set in. “I kind of enjoyed that,” Schmidt said. “And then, the rest of the questioning went a little bit different after that.”
What the Calendar Supports
Pin-Ups For Vets raises money for hospital visits, care packages for deployed troops, rehabilitation equipment for VA hospitals, and support for homeless veterans and those transitioning into housing. The organization says it has donated nearly $140,000 worth of rehabilitation equipment to veterans and military hospitals and has visited more than 25,000 ill and injured veterans across more than 135 hospitals and state veterans’ homes.
Asked what she believes Americans take for granted, Schmidt didn’t hesitate: “Everything.”
“Our freedom, our ability, especially for women, especially coming back from the Middle East, just being able to drive by myself, vote, get a job, have a mortgage and credit cards, that I do not take for granted,” she said. “We can be anyone we want to be, we can go anywhere we want to go, do what we want to do, and not everyone in the world has that freedom.”
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