17 www.CharlestonWomenPodcast.com | www.ReadCW.com | www.Instagram.com /CharlestonWomen Have you ever thought about the fact that ships are referred to using female pronouns and that U.S. naval vessels are given feminine nicknames? For instance, the USS Yorktown, the Charleston area’s most visible connection to the United States Navy, is called “The Fighting Lady.” Yet when she was active during the mid-20th century, her crew was 100 percent male. Many more decades would pass before women sailors were assigned to the Navy’s combat ships. Today, about 60,000 women are on active duty in the U.S. Navy, comprising 18 percent of that branch of service. Although, women have officially served in the Navy since World War 2. They were in a separate section called Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service or WAVES. It was established during wartime so that men stationed ashore could be freed up for sea duty. It wasn’t until 1994 that women were assigned duty aboard warships. Things have changed a lot over the last 75 years. Since 2016, the military has allowed women to serve in all positions, and they now hold traditionally male jobs like aviators and explosive ordnance disposal specialists. Women can attain high ranking positions commanding legions of both men and women sailors. In fact, the vice chief of naval operations, the second-highest ranking position in the U.S. Navy, is currently held by a woman, Admiral Lisa Franchetti. She has been nominated by President Joe Biden to serve on the Joint Chiefs of Staff and is awaiting senate confirmation for that post. Since the USS Yorktown never saw women assigned to her crew during her active-duty years, it makes for a bit of local irony that now, for the first time in history, the Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum is headed by a woman. True, she is a civilian and not a veteran of the Navy. But decades ago, a woman would not have been considered to serve at the helm. When Allison Hunt accepted the position of executive director last March, she had already made history by becoming the first woman to head the USS Yorktown Foundation, the group charged with providing support and fundraising for exhibits, scholarships and programs for the various museums of Patriots Point. She was well-prepared for the expanded position heading the operations of Patriots Point which includes not only the naval and maritime museum, but the management of 465 acres of land that’s also home to a golf course, athletic fields, restaurants, a resort hotel and a marina. The star attraction of Patriots Point is, of course, the USS Yorktown. Hunt’s office is on the hangar bay, so there are lots of opportunities for her to interact with some of the 300,000 annual visitors to the ship as well as the 140 volunteers, many of whom are Navy veterans. Hunt’s passion for exploring the story of the Navy began when she visited Patriots Point as a young child, vacationing there with her family. She explained that Patriots Point is the perfect medium through which to foster children’s enthusiasm, interest and appreciation for the Navy. Hunt explained what’s in store for the popular attraction, now under her leadership, “We plan to continue to partner with the Town of Mount Pleasant in providing an excellent series of educational summer camps onboard the ship. We have redesigned our overnight program and are continuing to enhance our ‘Live Like a Sailor’ experience. We have a major initiative to upgrade our flight academy and add additional programming. I am inspired every day by our veterans who work and volunteer on the ship and our visitors who come from all over the world. And it’s an honor to tell their story.” A Salute to Women BY MARY COY Feature Ashe-Arriola with her helicopter detachment on the flight deck of the USS Howard (DDG83) off the horn of Africa.
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