Published in the “Belvoir Eagle” May 27, 2010
REMEMBER the childhood game
"follow the leader"? The idea was
to mimic the antics of the person
in front of you in the line of
boys and girls winding through the
neighborhood. Being a follower
was all right, but being a leader
was the most fun, creating
imaginative routes and tasks for
everyone else to copy. In real
life, great leaders are rare.
Often, men and women are elected
or appointed to leadership
positions, but then falter or
fail to act. Others abuse their
power to satisfy their egos,
crushing them subordinates and
squandering resources. But
without faithful, ethical, and
effective leaders, people wander.
American women have contributed to
American life since the time the
American Revolution, and their
organizations continue to function
as an important vehicle for
exerting influence in the public
arena. Throughout most U.S.
history, popular belief held that
"women's place was in the home,"
that their talents should be
applied solely within the domestic
setting. Until modern times women
were unwelcomed in most groups
founded by men for civic action,
self-improvement, or social
interaction. Yet throughout
history women routinely defied the
proscriptions against their public
role and met with one another to
create a collective voice for
change. In this way American men
have come to accept women's use of
organizations to help shape the
nation's political social, and
economic life.
Unfortunately, it was the advent
of wars and the crying need for
"manpower" that broke barriers and
allowed women to take up roles
that men had vacated as they went
off to war. This was evident in
more modern times of World War I
and World War II and men were
called to war, more and more women
took "nontraditional" roles in the
factories, supporting the war
effort.
With economic activity on the rise
and millions of men going off to
war, a sudden need for women
workers developed. The trends of
the 1920's more women workers and
more of them married accelerated.
By 1944 fully 6.5 million
additional women had entered the
work force, and at the peak of war
production in 1945, more than
19 million women were employed.
Additional thousands were serving
in the armed forces.
World War II accelerated the
acceptance of women into the armed
forces. Women were admitted as
nurses and as navy "yeomen(F)" to
the number of 11,000 in World War
I, and on a much larger scale but
still in auxiliary units in
World War II, reaching a peak
strength of 27,100 out of some 12
million.
By 1989 women numbered 25,100 of
the active duty personnel and were
almost fully integrated, although
still for the most part barred
from combat. This has changed over
the years; as women have proved
themselves in combat over the past
several decades, long held
barriers to combat service roles
have fallen. Almost unheard of in
the past was women serving aboard
a very cloistered situation- US
Naval submarines, but even this
barrier has fallen with the first
women to serve aboard US
submarines in 2012.
Being a military wife means being
the man when the man can't be. It
means being a Daddy, a Mommy, and
a friend. It means helping your
children understand that the man
who comes and goes so often is not
just a friend or a lover, but a
father and a husband. He doesn't
just get angry and quiet, but he
cries and laughs. The sacrifices
of a military family are endless,
and only understood (in the truest
for of the word) by those that are
in the same position. The worries
are uninterrupted. The changes are
the only constant thing you have
in your life......except for the
love. The LOVE proves its strength
time and time again. It reaches
across deserts; it floats over
bullets. It seems out of packages
and transmits over telephones. It
acts as the glue that keeps the
frustrated wife hanging on. It is
the only reason, sometimes, for
waiting so long. It connects those
few that share common ground. It
allows that fleeting glimpse of
happiness, that light in all the
darkness.... the light that is
possible because of the women
involved; the children involved;
the men involved. The light that
is possible because of us,
military wives.
We have a very pertinent example of
a mother, officer and wife in the
person of our own CPT Lock. She
has done extremely well in the
short time she has been at Dewitt;
yet she faces many challenges. She
is a "single" mother with her
husband deployed overseas.
As a former dual marriage soldier,
I can well understand some of the
challenges that CPT Lock is going
through, to include the aches and
pain of being separated from her
spouse. This can only be made even
more agonizing when there are two
little children involved.
Essentially, you become a "single
parent" when your military spouse
is deployed. There is no doubt that
CPT Lock is concerned about the
safety or her husband in a war
zone, as I was worried about mine
when he was in Afghanistan in the
winter and spring of 2008/2009, and
we all pray for the safe return of
the other CPT Lock and all soldiers
overseas. But being a single parent
of two little ones no doubt has its
unique and exhausting challenges.
But happy news always comes our
way; we celebrate with CPT Lock in
her upcoming promotion to Major
congratulations!
By Carmen M. Duarte