I read an older notice yesterday and had not realized Brigadier General Evelyn “Pat” Foote passed away in August at the age of 95. While I refer to myself as an “inadvertent pioneer”, it is possible when she first entered the Women’s Army Corps (WAC), she may or may not have thought of herself in the same way. Here is a short piece. “Pat was a career Army officer, serving on active duty from 1959 to 1989, and rising to the rank of Brigadier General. Her key assignments included public affairs officer in Vietnam from 1967 to 1968 and command at battalion, brigade and post levels. She was a graduate of Wake Forest University (BA) and Shippensburg University (MS) and holds an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from Wake Forest University. Pat is best remembered in the Army for holding many firsts and for being a fierce advocate for military women.

In 1994, Pat was appointed to the American Battle Monuments Commission and subsequently to the Site and Design Committee of the WWII memorial. From 2006 -2016 she met the Ely senior class at the WWII Memorial, briefing them on the history, design and construction of the memorial.”

After the transition into regular Army when women selected specific branches to serve in, she chose Military Police, which was definitely not the path most women selected at the time.

I never met her personally, but we all knew of her. At the time she was selected to be Brigadier General (one-star), that was the highest rank a woman could expect to achieve. That has to do with the limited positions women could hold; another thing that has changed considerably. A quick word about the American Battle Monuments Committee. That is one of those highly prestigious positions cherished by anyone interested in American history. Once appointed to the Committe it is usually permanent. The long time many individuals serve on it is one reason why so few positions ever open.