I only have one personal experience, and that is my former daughter-in-law who was a child care worker when 9/11 happened. It made her think about the future and what kind of world these kids might inherit, so she enlisted in the Army to do her part. She was very much in the middle of a war zone through most of her tour, and in fact had just left her barracks to get some food when that barracks was blown up. And she has pics of her with other female soldiers, so she wasn't the only woman there.
A semi-personal experience is Monello's sort of DIL, who is more on the ball than most men I know. Braver, fiercer, and significantly more intelligent. I don't know the story of what led her to join the military, but I do know that if I had to pick a SHTF team I'd snatch her up first.
So you all * ahem* who are envisioning WACs and nurses....yeah, the 50s called and they want their silly notions back.