By REAR ADM. ANN C. PHILLIPS and CAPT. KATHLEEN T. JABS
FOR THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT | MAR 13, 2021
The Commonwealth of Virginia is home to more than 108,000 women veterans, a number that is growing in large part because of the many assets and opportunities for women veterans in Virginia. We are fortunate to have so many capable women whose unique view of life as veterans makes them indispensable to our society. They are brave, and they have a growth mindset along with the courage to walk into a new situation and to lead, learn and achieve.
We each understand this on a personal level. We both served decades in the U.S. Navy, and we learned what it took to succeed and excel in a world where there were very few or no other women, and where our mere presence was often challenged.
Retired U.S. Navy Capt. Kathleen T. Jabs served 27 years of active and reserve duty as a public affairs officer and is now the deputy secretary for veterans and defense affairs for the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Our own Navy experiences were quite different — one served a full active-duty career on ships, operating globally, commanding at all levels; the other served in a mix of active and reserve assignments around the world, juggling the role of reserve CO, military spouse and mother to dependent children.
For both of us, every assignment and move required a new set of knowledge skills and abilities, which only rarely touched on any foundation of previous experience. We learned to adapt, to cultivate flexibility and resiliency and to seek out new experiences.
Today, both of us continue our service in new roles, this time for the Commonwealth of Virginia where we have the privilege to serve in Gov. Ralph Northam’s Administration and work on policies to keep Virginia at the forefront of coastal resilience as well as to foster veterans and military-friendly initiatives across the state.
As women veterans ourselves, we know that women veterans bring a level of dedication, service and collaborative leadership that is especially needed and valuable in today’s society. Simply by virtue of their service, women veterans have chosen a nontraditional path. Currently, 1% of the nation serves in the military; women make up 17% of that 1%.
Irrespective of their rating specialty or rank, women veterans are exceptional in that they have served their country as a member of the military. Whether serving on active duty until retirement, choosing service in the reserves for part of their career, or serving a single tour of duty, women are minorities in military service, across all branches, and in most specialties. To succeed in their jobs, they’ve had to work harder, learn faster and master the art of multitasking, across work, family and many other commitments, often under arduous conditions, and often as one of only a few women in their unit.
Here in the Commonwealth, as we celebrate Women Veterans Week through March 20, we recognize the diverse skillsets women veterans bring to the workforce. In the critical fields of technology, science, engineering, education, health care, logistics, shipbuilding, ship repair and entrepreneurism, women veterans bring more because they have experienced more. Virginia needs these skilled workers and talented citizens now more than ever.
But women veterans need Virginia, too. Women veterans leaving the service often lack a sense of community, the pace and stress of their considerable experiences are not known or understood by neighbors and colleagues. Some are single parents or functioning as single parents with deployed spouses, and need help finding safe and secure childcare and other services for their families. Some women veterans experience health issues and need assistance navigating Veteran’s Administration services. Many women veterans don’t even identify or consider themselves to be veterans.
The Commonwealth recognizes the challenges women veterans face; women veterans in Virginia are fortunate to have champions and advocates in the administration, General Assembly and throughout state government. The Virginia Department of Veterans Services has a strong women veterans program that provides critical support to women veterans and their families through networking and support events. From workshops focused on business development and health and wellness, to a two-day Women Veterans Summit, Virginia is at the national forefront for women veteran programs and opportunities.
We encourage you to take time during Virginia Women Veterans week to thank women veterans and seek out ways to enable Virginia to continue to “Lead the Way.”
Retired U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Ann C. Phillips served 31 years on active duty as a surface warfare officer and is now the special assistant to Gov. Ralph Northam for coastal adaptation and protection. Retired U.S. Navy Capt. Kathleen T. Jabs served 27 years of active and reserve duty as a public affairs officer and is now the deputy secretary for veterans and defense affairs for the Commonwealth of Virginia