VIDEO: Fort Lee honors the role of women in the military

FORT LEE — Thursday afternoon saw Fort Lee dedicate a Virginia Highway Historical Marker honoring what was then known as Camp Lee’s role in the training of the Women’s Army Corps, taking the occasion to celebrate both the road sign’s dedication and the role of women in the US Army.

Local dignitaries and base officials turned out in force for the event, including Virginia First Lady Dorothy McAuliffe and Petersburg Mayor W. Howard Meyers from Petersburg, as well as many of the surviving women who had served in the Women’s Army Corps.

Sgt. Maj. Velma Lyons, one of the last remaining WAC members still on active duty, was one of the speakers at the ceremony. Lyons enlisted in 1978 as a WAC, and was trained in one of the last WAC classes from Fort McClellan, Alabama. When WAC was disestablished, she transferred to the US Army, where she has remained to this day, and has plans to retire in 2019 after 40 years of service.

Even four decades later though, Lyons remembers her time spent in WAC, and the impact that it had on her.

“As a woman, who wore the WAC insignia, the Pallas Athene, the symbol of the Greek Goddess of wisdom and war, I owe so much to the women who served with me and who wore the Pallas Athene before me,” said Lyons. “As I look back on my career, and the opportunity afforded to me, I owe so much of it to the women who preceded me in WAC.”

Maj. Gen. Darnell K. Williams thanked each of the attendees and guests, before recognizing the history of women in the Army, and the progress still to be made.

“Today we recognize a group of soldiers who played a tremendous role in shaping the history of our Army, and the history of our nation,” said Williams. “The WAC set the precedent for young female soldiers to serve in all capacities, to include our ongoing efforts to integrate them into combat units.”

The guest of honor for the dedication was Lt. Gen. Karen Dyson, who spoke on the impact the Army and women have had upon each other, ranging from the impact women taking up jobs left by men fighting in World War I had on the women’s suffrage, to how expanding the draft to include women, is a political issue today.

“Those first few brave women who served our nation received no benefits and little recognition, but the impact they had on our nation was a profound one,” said Dyson. “Throughout my career, I’ve always been able to find strength from stories of the WAC, knowing what they had to overcome serving our Army and our country.”

It’s a subject Dyson knows more than most about, given her distinguished military career, most recently becoming one of only five women in the Army promoted to have earned her third general’s star.

Established shortly after the US entry into World War II, the Women’s Army Corps was created to allow women to perform a number of critical jobs and support roles. Over the course of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War, tens of thousands of women would serve in the WAC. Following a Congressional Act in 1978, the WAC was disestablished and women were integrated into the ranks of the US Army.

Fort Lee’s role in the Women’s Army Corps is why the U.S. Army Women’s Museum is located on the base, having been built on post 15 years ago following the closure of Fort McClellan, Alabama.

• Sean CW Korsgaard can be reached at skorsgaard@progress-index.com or 804-722-5172.