William Winnewisser
Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army (1982-2002)
The Army is the best thing that ever happened to me. My career gave me an opportunity to make what I believe was a significant positive impact on the lives and careers of the numerous outstanding soldiers with whom I served. It didn't hit me that I was gay until 1983, after I received my commission and was on active duty as a platoon leader in Germany. Being in a leadership position, I decided to go into what I called monk mode, not even considering a relationship as a possibility. I would bury myself in work and be married to the Army.
With no other distractions, I was able to pour everything into soldiering. Following my platoon leader positions, I held jobs as aide-de-camp, company commander and observer/controller for coaching and training maintenance companies in a tactical environment while we were sending them off to Desert Storm. I worked in the Army Operations Center at the Pentagon, doing "joint" work before becoming the executive officer for the AOC for two years. I was honored to be chosen as an Army White House social aide.
I went on to become a battalion commander. I loved the job, but the drawback was knowing that at some point during my tenure, I likely would face the issue of dismissing a soldier for no other reason than that he or she was accused of being gay. A battalion commander has considerable influence, although not usually the final say, in administrative discharges. I was concerned about how I would handle it if a soldier was outed under my command. Happily, I did not have to confront such a situation.
I would have loved to remain in the Army and I probably would have continued to do well, however the Army's policy on gays in the military made that impossible. Two decades of always having to look over my shoulder were enough. I retired the day after I changed command, with 20 years of service to my country.