RANCHO CORDOVA, Calif. — Rancho Cordova is home to the highest percentage of women veterans relative to its population size out of all seven Sacramento County cities.
Nearly one-third — or 1,060 out of 3,635 — of Rancho Cordova veterans are women, according to 2023 U.S. Census Bureau population estimates. Among them, over half are within the 18-54 age group.
Suzy Choi, 47, said she chose to reside in the city later in life. She joined the U.S. Air Force in 2001, deployed to Iraq in 2006, then enrolled in the University of California, Davis, physician assistant program in 2009. Originally from Orange County, she needed a place to live.
“When the realtors asked me what I desire, (it) was just anywhere that's close to the river within my budget,” Choi said. “A lot of people don't know about Rancho, but…I just love it. I can walk to the river.”
Choi now works as a PA in the Mather Air Force Base emergency room.
Stacey Welch, 40, served six years on active duty for the U.S. Army in the early 2000s before moving to Rancho Cordova in 2010 because her husband lived there.
“We've stayed for two reasons. One, we have bought our home, and that's been a good experience, but also the (Mather) VA is really handy,” Welch said.
Maria Chacon Kniestedt, a Rancho Cordova spokeswoman, said the city boasts significant ties to the armed forces.
“The city of Rancho Cordova has a rich military history with the former Mather Air Force Base,” she said. “Today, the city is home to the California Military Department Headquarters, and it is also adjacent to Mather Field, where the Sacramento VA Medical Center is located, as well as the California National Guard.”
Rancho Cordova’s proximity to military landmarks provides some sentimentality, according to Shatayia Baker, 48, who served almost four years in the U.S. Air Force before being medically discharged in 1999.
“I absolutely love it,” Baker said. “I almost feel like it's the nostalgia of being near what used to be a base, hearing the planes, seeing different…military personnel that are around. It's this nostalgia of driving along the flight line.”
How do other Sacramento-area cities measure up?
Sacramento houses the most women veterans in the county largely due to the city’s population size, but about 15% of Sacramento veterans are women compared to Rancho Cordova’s 29%.
According to 2023 population estimates (unless otherwise noted), here’s how the rest of the Sacramento region stacks up:
- About 9.5% of Citrus Heights veterans are women.
- About 8.5% of Galt veterans are women (from 2022 data).
- About 8.4% of Elk Grove veterans are women.
- About 3.8% of Roseville veterans are women.
- About 1.5% of Folsom veterans are women.
According to 2022 census estimates, no women veterans call Isleton home.
Women in the military
The percentage of women in the military has increased in recent years, according to the U.S. Department of Defense.
In 2023, roughly 17.6% (230,000 out of 1.3 million) of active duty military personnel were women, according to the Military Health System. In 2022, 17.5% of active duty military and 21.6% of the selected reserve were women, according to DOD demographics.
From 2005 to 2022, the percentage of active duty military women rose by 2.9% while the percentage of women in the selected reserve rose by 4.4%, the Pentagon said last year.
Choi said it’s hard to be a woman in the military.
“We don’t even acknowledge that we are here,” she said. “I’m a woman veteran, but when I go out, for instance, I’m with somebody else. They think I am the dependent.”
Welch said during her time with the U.S. Army, she deployed on a 15-month tour to Iraq and would go on to earn the rank of sergeant.
“I've had people look at me and say, ‘Oh, you're a veteran? Did you serve in the Air Force?’ No, I was in the Army. ‘Oh, so you were in the reserves?’ No, I was on active duty,” Welch said. “We get a very different response than men do…I actually had somebody say to me, ‘You’re in the army? But, you’re pretty.’”
She said it’s much more socially acceptable for a man to tell stories of their military service and be seen as rough and tough.
“If you just say the word ‘veteran’ in society, people think of a guy,” she said. “They don't think of a woman, and that's just what it is. We already as females are not in the public conscience as what constitutes a veteran.”
Services and celebrations
Local companies and government agencies offer women veteran-specific services.
One example of a women veteran-specific resource deals with the data point that about one in three women compared to one in 50 men respond "yes," that they experienced military sexual trauma (MST), when screened by their veterans services provider, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sacramento County Veterans Services employs five veteran claims representatives, three of whom are women, according to department spokeswoman Allison Harris.
“The Veteran Services Officer is a retired female Air Force veteran and understands the unique challenges and needs of women veterans,” Harris said. “The Sacramento VSO staff are highly trained and sensitive to the needs of these veterans during the claims process and treat them with the respect and dignity they deserve.”
Melissa Washington, founder and CEO of the Placer County-based Women Veterans Alliance, said her organization aims to uplift women veterans by assisting in reintegration to civilian life, helping them find jobs, empowering small business owners and building a supportive, educated community.
“(It’s) providing women a safe space to be seen, heard and connect with other women who have served,” Washington said. “Women are more likely to open up to other women veterans than male counterparts.”
The state of California also offers its own women veterans resources.
To celebrate Veterans Day in the Rancho Cordova community, the city said the Cordova High School football team placed 500 flags along a three-mile stretch of Folsom Boulevard from Rod Beaudry Drive to Kilgore Road. The flags were placed Saturday and will stand until Tuesday.
A blood drive is also being hosted 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday at Rancho Cordova City Hall. Participation is by appointment only, and those interested can book a time slot HERE.
