Women Making WAVES

PHILIPPINE SEA

03.01.2024

Story by Petty Officer 3rd Class Adina Phebus 

USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71)     

Prior to the establishment of Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES) in 1942, and the passing of the Women’s Armed Service Integration Act in 1948, women sat in the back seat for a large part of U.S. military history. Society and the U.S. military has changed drastically in the past 100 years, seeing an increase in the number of opportunities for women.

One of the many impactful women aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) is the sole female head of department (HOD), Cmdr. Natalie Bakan. Bakan, Dental Department HOD, joined the Navy in 2009 and has seen many new roles for women sailors throughout her career.

“We’ve seen the first woman to command a Strike Group, the first woman to be allowed on a submarine, the first female Blue Angel, the first female commander of the Naval Construction Battalion in Gulfport, Mississippi, the first African-American female 4-star Admiral, and now we have the first female Chief of Naval Operations,” said Bakan.

The positions women occupy now are more diverse than when WAVES was established. During World War II, only 38 ratings were open to women for the duration of the war and six months following. The majority of WAVES worked in clerical, heath care or storekeeper billets but could not be assigned to duty in aircraft while engaged in combat missions or aboard Navy vessels other than hospital ships.

Over 350,000 women served in WAVES until the completion of the war and most were discharged in 1946 with Congress debating the legislation of the Women’s Armed Service Integration Act from 1946-1948. Those opposed to the bill argued women should comprise separate reserve forces within each branch.

Fleet Adm. Chester Nimitz said in his statement to Congress in 1947, “In any future war, it will be mandatory to have at our command immediately all possible resources. Womanpower is one of them.”

In 1948, Congress eventually passed the Women’s Armed Service Integration Act, giving women a permanent place in the armed services and marking the beginning of full participation and advancement for women in military service.

Since the passing of the act, women have excelled in the military and taken advantage of the opportunities presented to them.

“Every day when I walk around the ship, I see women doing the same jobs as their male counterparts,” said Bakan. “It makes me very proud. Gender doesn’t hold anyone back from much anymore.”

As the only female HOD currently aboard Theodore Roosevelt, she gushed about who she has looked up to throughout her career as a dental officer.

“Rear Adm. Gayle Shaffer was a dental role model for myself,” said Bakan. “She was a commanding officer of a naval hospital at one point, and then became the first female medical officer of the Marine Corps.”

Shaffer joined the Navy in 1989 and became the first dentist to serve as Deputy Chief, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery; Deputy Surgeon General of the Navy; and Director, Medical Resources, Plans, and Policy division in 2021. She deployed as a commanding officer of the NATO Role 3 Multinational Medical Unit and retired from the Navy in 2022.

Inspired by Shaffer, Bakan wanted to share her advice for young women finding their way in the Navy.

“You can do anything in the Navy,” said Bakan. “Stay true to your values and don’t be afraid to speak up if things don’t seem right. If you’re having issues, find someone you can trust and lean on them as a mentor or a colleague.”

According to a 2021 demographics profile of the military community (Defense.gov), women make up 17.3 percent of active-duty military members, serving their country with honor, courage, and commitment alongside their male counterparts. Every day, without fail, they challenge the standards and prove themselves capable.

• Date Taken: 03.01.2024
• Date Posted: 03.21.2024 03:02
• Story ID: 466719
• Location: PHILIPPINE SEA