BREE FRAM - Blazing trails to build a stronger military

U.S. Space Force Lt. Colonel Bree Fram will be remembered as a trailblazer for a transgender-inclusive military. This was not so obvious when we met about six years ago. However, she's well on her way to earn that distinction with a public track record of advocacy and leadership.

- Nora A. Simone

A normal childhood

Bree's childhood was generally normal for a US-born white male in the 1980's. She experienced a happy nuclear family upbringing with siblings, friends, education, and activities. Bree acknowledges feeling different at an early age; intuitively knowing those feelings were not to be shared. For example, being dressed in a Wonder Woman costume at age 3 or 4 remains a vivid trans-related early memory. (For those unfamiliar, Wonder Woman is an athletic superheroine comic character who fights for justice.)

Today, Bree enjoys 17 years of healthy marriage, two supportive children, an enviable track record of achievements in the US military, and remarkable leadership in transgender rights.

She happens to be trans

Bree does not introduce herself as trans because being trans is not relevant to the vast majority of her conversations. She describes herself as a family-oriented rocket scientist, adventurer, and nerd. To this point, when asked a hypothetical question "Why should extraterrestrial aliens select you to populate a new planet?" being trans is not part of her response. Instead, she'd ask for more information to fully understand the purpose of that new population. That's an impressively practical response!

Inspiration from other trailblazers