Photo By Edwin Wriston | West Virginia National Guard's Sgt. Kristin Vannatter and her wife, former U.S. Army...... read more read more
Subscribe
For Sgt. Kristen Vannatter and her wife, former Sgt. Lori Thompson, seeing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer + Pride month celebrated in the military serves as a victory for one of the most arduous battles they’ve ever fought.
Vannatter, a 91D - Power Generator Mechanic with Bravo Company, 1-224th Security and Support Aviation Battalion in Williamstown, West Virginia, is about to finish her paperwork for retirement after serving in the West Virginia National Guard for 20 years. As such, this year’s Pride Month is even more special to her as it will be her last in uniform.
“It means everything to me to be able to not worry about hiding,” Vannatter said through tears. “Prior to the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, my service was entirely different. I was dedicated to my state and all it shared with me, but I could not share myself with my country or state in return.”
In 1994, the U.S. adopted Defense Directive 1304.26, known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, an official federal policy regarding military service by lesbian, gay and bisexual individuals that prevented them from being open about their sexuality without the threat of discharge. Over the course of the policy’s life, thousands of service members were discharged for expressing who they were and whom they loved, often being outed by fellow service members.
Seventeen years after meeting her wife, who was in the Army Reserves at the time, Vannatter revels in the joy of celebrating patriotism and her authenticity as an LGBTQ+ servicemember.
After meeting and falling in love, the couple waited a full decade before getting married, fearing they would jeopardize their military careers.
“We had to wait for the rest of the world to catch up,” Vannatter said. “We did not want to lose our careers as soldiers, and we also did not want to leave our state to be seen as a legitimate couple. We’re West Virginia girls. We waited it out so we could stay here and so our families could be more involved.”
Thompson did not complete 20 years of service to retire despite that being her initial goal.
“I had to get out because I internalized and dwelled on the fear that Don’t Ask Don’t Tell caused,” Thompson said. “That policy kept me from being the best soldier I could be and from having a fruitful career. I could not live authentically in an environment where I was asked to potentially give my life for an organization that didn’t want all of me. I was too concerned about the potentially irreparable harm that simply loving Kristen could bring. I was too young to have the emotional fortitude to take on the unfairness of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.”
Despite the discrimination of DADT, both Thompson and Vannatter agreed that being West Virginians leaned in their favor regarding any prejudice they faced.
“I think I had an advantage as a West Virginian,” Thompson said. “West Virginians value unity, hospitality and family over mostly everything, so it did not matter to the ones who knew I am gay. They just cared that I did my job. That made my life under Don’t Ask Don’t Tell a lot easier at the unit level.”
Those same values of home, family and community alleviated much of Thompson’s anxiety when her wife deployed to Kuwait in 2019.
“The WVNG Family Readiness Program never hesitated to include me during Kristen’s deployment. It did not matter to them that we don’t have children or that we’re a same-sex couple,” Thompson said. “It was so sweet to intentionally reach out to me and make sure that I knew when events were happening, even when this unit wasn’t even her home unit. They never let us fall through the cracks and be forgotten about.”
The Guard’s Family Readiness Program provides support and resources to service members and their families. The organization’s goal is to strengthen the force of the WVNG by involving and including service members’ most valuable supporters: their families.
“Guard Family is something special,” Vannatter said. “We serve as an example of unity and respect, especially here in the Mountain State.”
As part of the Army’s seven core values, respect acts as a guideline of how to treat others.
“Respect in the Army means to treat others with dignity while expecting others to do the same in return,” Vanatter said. “That is what allows us to appreciate the best in other people. The Army is one team and each of us has something to offer the team, but we can’t offer it without respect. It is our duty as soldiers to set the standard on how to respect, accept, honor and trust others. That includes LGBTQ+ people.”
Thompson agrees with her wife. “Forward thinking prevents negative history from repeating itself,” she said.
Being respected as an LGBTQ+ servicemember has given Vannatter the opportunity to stay committed to her state service and honor her federal obligation as well.
“Not having my sexuality be seen as a barrier makes me more combat effective because I don’t have to worry about hiding anything. I can focus on my mission and how to improve the chances of success,” she said.
The couple noted the correlation between poor mental health and suicide in the National Guard as point of change for leadership. According to Department of Defense statistics, in 2018, the National Guard had a suicide rate of 30.6 per 100,000 servicemembers, higher than the general U.S. population. LGBTQ+ servicemembers bear the weight of additional challenges based on their identity, increasing the likelihood of negative mental health and increased potential for suicidal thoughts or tendencies.
“Probably in the last five years or so I have noticed the WVNG shift focus to learn more about families and encouraging one another to form more intrapersonal relationships, regardless of dynamic,” Vannatter said, adding that focus was missing for the first half of her service.
“Just like a financial burden or getting injured, being disrespected can dramatically tear a soldier down,” Thompson said. “Humanizing soldiers, specifically LGBTQ+ soldiers, by being more inclusive has and will continue to save lives.”
Vannatter said her overall experience as a WVNG soldier has been focused on her job duties rather than who she loves.
“I have been really fortunate enough to have been in a leadership climate where people value my skillset and know my sexuality has nothing to do with how well I preform my job. It also has been beneficial to know that if something were to happen to me, my wife would be the first to know. That would not have happened prior to the repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” Vannatter said.
Recent policy remarks on enhancing inclusivity in the U.S. military go far to encourage a level playing field for all, regardless of sexual orientation by stating, “All Americans who are qualified to serve in the Armed Forces of the United States will be able to serve. The All-Volunteer Force thrives when it is composed of diverse Americans who can meet the rigorous standards for military service, and an inclusive military strengthens our national security.”
Vannatter and Thompson agreed that removing the subjectivity of personal beliefs to be a motivating factor in the treatment of LGBTQ+ service members helps to prevent discrimination and builds a stronger military through diversity.
“I am so proud to see my state standing up for me, fighting for what is right and setting an example to follow,” Vannatter said.
| Date Taken: | 06.11.2021 |
| Date Posted: | 06.11.2021 08:30 |
| Story ID: | 398667 |
| Location: | CHARLESTON, WV, US |
| Web Views: | 149 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, W.Va. Guardsman celebrates opportunity for authentic service during Pride Month, by SPC Meghan Keller, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT