Texas A&M University-Kingsville

KINGSVILLE (News Release) - The Texas A&M University-Kingsville Foundation, College of Arts & Sciences, and the John E. Conner Museum will host distinguished alumna and author Colonel Lisa “La Coronela” Carrington Firmin for a reception on Tuesday, April 26.  

The community is invited to celebrate the release of her book, Stories from the Front: Pain, Betrayal, and Resilience on the MST Battlefield, with hors d’oeuvres and drinks at the Conner Museum (905 W. Santa Gertrudis St.) from 4 – 6 PM.  

Stories from the Front, published by Blue Ear Books commemorates the second anniversary of Vanessa Guillén’s murder and spreads awareness during national Sexual Assault and Prevention Awareness month in April. Firmin will provide remarks, read excerpts, answer questions, and sign copies for attendees. 

A proud Javelina, Firmin graduated in 1979 with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism. She is the founder of Carrington Firmin LLC, where she writes and provides consulting services in Leadership, Veterans, Transitions, Military Sexual Trauma (MST), Diversity, and Inclusion. An accomplished poet, La Coronela included two poems in her book focused on MST. 

She is the founder of the Office of Veteran and Military Affairs at The University of Texas at San Antonio and now serves as UTSA’s Military Liaison.  

After serving 30 years in the Air Force and retiring as its most senior-ranking Latina officer, Colonel Carrington Firmin was horrified by the appalling murder of a fellow Latina, Army Specialist Vanessa Guillén, in April 2020. Vanessa’s horrific death became the catalyst for repressed memories of the colonel’s own sexual assault during initial training and the repeated sexual harassment she endured early in her career and catapulted her on a soul-searching journey to document experiences and to advocate for change within the armed services.  

Stories from the Front includes 14 stories of veterans and active-duty individuals who experienced MST across all military services from the Vietnam era to present. Quite diverse, La Coronela also captures individual incidents of race/ethnic, gender and LGBTQ sexual orientation discrimination as well as combat experiences. Retired Army Major General Tony Cucolo states the book is an “invaluable effort to capture the extreme personal side of MST in all its forms, and a must-read for armed forces leaders at all levels.” 

For more information or to order a copy of Stories from the Front, visit blueearbooks.com. There will be a limited supply of books available for purchase at the event.