JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas -- Imagine being a young girl and the one woman who you love the most and is supposed to protect you, your mother, sells you for money and drugs throughout your childhood. Now, as an adult you decide to join the military as a way to escape, and because you love your country so much, but the sexual assaults still happen to you. That is the shortest version of Adrianna Ruark's tragic story.
Even through Adrianna has faced some horrific events throughout her life, she has managed to use those same moments to rebuild and be resilient. She has an amazing attitude and positive outlook on life and is always smiling.
“I can remember always trying to find positives even as a little girl. I loved adventures outside, playing in the woods and just being silly,” Adrianna said. “I always tried to find a happy place and happy thoughts.”
Her main avenue for resiliency and coping is through art. Adrianna is an avid painter and has created an entire series based on her life and everything she has went through. Although some of her art pieces can come across as dark and harsh, it is her story and her life that she has put on canvas for the world to see.
“Painting things out and expressing things that way helped me get hope, and then joining AFW2 helped get the ball rolling on and things started to make sense. It has been a long journey and I don’t believe this is anything anyone can rush. It takes time,” Adrianna said.
Another way Adrianna copes is by sharing her story through her paintings, her book or just talking about it with AFW2 staff and other victims. It can be hard to talk about your most painful moments in life, but it can also be enlightening for some and helpful for others who have gone through, or currently, going through the same moments.
“I felt elated and excited to share my story with other people. That exposure to approaching my story head on, versus hiding from it or pretending it never happened has really helped me be more resilient,” Adrianna said.
Since being medically retired from the Air Force, Adrianna says her resiliency and recovery has increased and she has hope for the future. She’s excited to strengthen her family ties, continuing her art and doing things that make her happy.
“I am looking forward to focusing on my family relationships, creating new art pieces and getting them in an art gallery,” Adrianna said. “I also want to make new friends and hear from other people. I love adventures and next year I plan on going to training to become a missionary.”
Adrianna is an amazing example of how to be resilient and how those tragic moments that happen to people don’t have to be the end of that person. Find what makes you happy, what makes you ‘you’ again, and start a new journey to a better mental state and overall life.
View the video below to hear Adrianna’s full story and see her amazing artwork. Stay connected with us and tune in to our AFW2 social media pages to witness all the virtual events hosted by warriors, caregivers, and staff members. To learn more about the AFW2 Program, or to refer an Airman, visit www.woundedwarrior.af.mil for additional information and resources.