Maj. Michelle Bravo, executive officer for the ASU Army ROTC, will be retiring from the military this year after serving two tours in Kuwait and one in Iraq. Because the military has had such an impact on her, she wanted to give back to female veterans.
Bravo created "i Rock the Boots," which creates apparel for women and donates part of the proceeds to organizations that benefit female veterans.
“When I was younger, I would always see these shirts that said, ‘My dad wears combat boots,’ and others like that," she said. "I thought there should be something out there for the women to wear, too. I wanted people to know that I’m strong enough to wear these boots, too.”
With help from the Edson Student Entrepreneur Initiative, Bravo was able to receive funding to help the organization grow and expand.
“We sell a lot of T-shirts with portions of the profits going to help women veterans,” Bravo said. “I wanted there to be a purpose to what we were doing, so that is why a part of our proceeds are going to help these women.”
The lower case 'i' in the organization's name also serves a purpose, Bravo said.
“The lower case 'i' is there to show that we are part of a bigger team, and that it isn’t about me or any individual but all those that serve,” she said.
The majority of the merchandise is sold online, but the organization also supports many charity runs and events that take place in Arizona, Bravo said.
“We recently sponsored a run here in Arizona, where we sell our shirts and we were recently invited to have a booth at the (Ms. Veteran America Pageant) in Las Vegas,” she said.
Mary Gulley, chief of operations for ‘i Rock the Boots’ and U.S. Army veteran, said women don’t really get the recognition they deserve in the military. This is why she wanted to get involved with the organization.
“Sometimes women in the military don’t get the recognition or the help they need and sometimes don’t see themselves as veterans,” she said. “We want them to know they do matter and we are trying to help with the transition back into civilian life once they decide to leave the military.”
Ashley Morales, graphic designer for the organization, designs all of the apparel for in collaboration with Bravo and Gulley.
“It serves a great purpose and I love what we are doing,” Morales said.
T-shirts and hoodies are being sold on the organization's website, but Morales said she thinks they will began to expand the product base in the future.
“Right now we sell T-shirts and hoodies but we are going to move into fitness gear and supply military women with items they use on a day-to-day basis as well as our supporters,” she said.
With “i Rock the Boots,” Bravo said she hopes to serve a purpose and strengthen ties within the military community.
“I want to strengthen femininity in the military, and this is one way we can start doing that,” she said.
CORRECTION: Due to a source error, a previous version of this article incorrectly stated the name of an event the organization was invited to attend. This version has been updated with the correct information.
Reach the reporter at jshanco2@asu.edu or on follow @joey_hancock on Twitter.
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