Recently, two legacy veterans organizations elected their first female commanders. Army veteran Denise Rohan was appointed to the top position of the American Legion, an organization with 99 years of history and more than 2 million members. That same month, Delphine Metcalf-Foster was voted commander of Disabled American Veterans, which is slightly younger than the Legion and has approximately 1.7 million members. The two join Mary Stout, former female commander of the Vietnam Veterans of America, as the only women to lead a major national veteran's issues group, according to Military.com.
Denise Rohan: A veteran originally turned away
According to her official biography, Rohan left her Iowa hometown in 1974 to complete basic training at Fort McClellan, Alabama. She was honorably discharged in 1976, but not before meeting her husband, Mike.
During her speech at the Legion's annual convention in Reno, Nevada, this past August, Rohan recalled how she came to be a part of the organization. A recruiter came to her home in 1980 to convince her husband to join the local chapter. Rohan asked about joining herself but was told to contact the American Legion Auxiliary – a group for veteran's spouses – instead.
That incident did not stop her, however. Four years later, Rohan joined the Legion chapter in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. She served various leadership positions before her current appointment as commander.
"When our organization was started back in 1919, our founders said, 'A veteran is a veteran,' Rohan said during her speech, according to Military.com. "So ever since then, women have been part of our organization. Women could vote for national commander of the American Legion before they could vote for president of the United States, and there are females leading this organization across the nation."
Delphine Metcalf-Foster: Advocating for women's health
Metcalf-Foster's father passed away when she was 7 years old, but his stories about his time as a Buffalo soldier stuck with her. She joined the army as a nurse at age 34, serving 21 years before suffering nerve damage in 1991. One year later, a DAV representative spoke to Metcalf-Foster and her fellow servicemembers about the organization, and she decided to join. She became the first female commander of the DAV's California branch in 2004 and, according to The Vallejo Times-Herald, was awarded Veteran of the Year by former congressional representative George Miller in 2009.
"As a female, disabled, combat veteran Delphine brings to her new position as the National Commander of DAV a truly unique set of skills and a broad base of knowledge that will be a tremendous asset to all," George Miller told the newspaper.
The issues at hand
Each of the newly elected officials will focus on specific veteran's issues during their tenure. Inspired by an incident in her own life, Metcalf-Foster said she wanted to highlight issues within the Department of Veterans Affairs that are specific to women. She once went to the VA for a knee replacement but wasn't given a female-specific prosthetic. Metcalf-Foster also plans to continue DAV's efforts to extend VA caregiver benefits to people injured before 9/11.
Rohan also intends to use her new position to further work with the VA. During an interview with NPR, she acknowledged that many veterans don't have access to proper care from the government organization, especially those in rural areas. However, she noted the Legion is opposed to privatization and would prefer to work with the VA to ensure all veterans get the care they need. She also discussed this year's theme for the Legion, which is "Family First."
The appointment of Rohan and Metcalf-Foster marks a significant moment in American veteran history. The two are evidence that women's contributions to the military are not to be discounted, and that they are just as capable and deserving of leadership as their male peers.