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Right now three thousand citizen soldiers from across Illinois, including here in the Tri-States, are preparing to deploy to Afghanistan with the 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team.

Quincy resident Colonel Scott Thoele has risen within the ranks of the National Guard and now leads this mission. Of the three thousand soldiers he commands, an increasing number are women.

We caught up with one of them to find out what it takes to prepare for a mission such as this one.

First Lieutenant Cheryl Barnett from Beardstown has spent 7 years in the National Guard. She's one of many women training side by side with men.

Although men and women are equals out here, there are some physical differences when it comes to mobility. Imagine wearing almost half of your entire body weight, and being expected to run and fight. That's what many of these women face when wearing this 50-pound armored vest and 7-pound helmet, not to mention carrying around a gun and ammunition.

What is it like to train for that?

First Lieutenant Barnett said, "Well, basically what I've been doing because it does feel like you have to work twice as hard to get half as far as a woman, I put on this gear every night and go run every night and I'm talking an hour every night. They make us put it on and wear it around at times when you wouldn't think you need to to get used to it. You have to because when you get over into country there's going to be a whole host of other factors to get used to like the heat and the altitude so if you're not used to it here, it will be ten times worse when you get there."

What is like to be a woman in the military?

Sgt. Anya Alford said, "I think it's getting easier. I've been in for 9 years and it's gotten better. They're adjusting to us and as far as your hair goes, you have to adjust with that. Right now I'm wearing something around my hair so it won't be wild when I actually take my helmet off."

Even with the obvious differences, Barnett says gender lines are being blurred as more females answer the call to serve their country.

First Lieutenant Barnett said, "What I find in the army is that everyone has strengths and weaknesses. So some of the guys may be more physically tough than we are but we bring to the table a ton of other stuff then to the table, too, so it's really, I think everyone has a grasp and a handle on that, too."