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BOARDMAN -- Jennifer Baun wants women who served in the military to understand that they are part of that community regardless of how long they wore the uniform.
The Boardman native and U.S. Navy veteran has a larger platform to deliver that message after being elected national president of Military Women Across the Nation.
Baun was installed during the organization’s national convention in late September at Put-in-Bay.
Baun has been involved with the organization for nearly 20 years. She said a woman she knew through church while growing up introduced her to it.
A 1984 graduate of Boardman High School and the Mahoning County Joint Vocational School, Baun enlisted in the Navy through its delayed entry program.
She served during the Cold War as an ocean system technician analyst 2nd class petty officer.
She said she hopes to use the position to raise awareness of available benefits, strengthen connections among women veterans and preserve their stories.
“I never ask a woman if she’s a veteran. I always ask a woman if she’s served,” Baun said.
She said some women hesitate to identify themselves as veterans because they served only a year or two.
“Even so, you are still a veteran,” she said.
Baun said women who served in the military share many of the same experiences and challenges as their male counterparts. But she said some specific to women that deserve greater attention.
“We don’t like to separate ourselves from male veterans, but there are some unique needs I try to be vocal and advocate for," she said. "Having a national leadership position gives me the ability to draw attention to those and let women know about benefits and services they may not be aware they can access."
Baun also wants to encourage women veterans to reconnect with others who served.
Those relationships offer a sense of community and an understanding that can be difficult to find elsewhere, she said. They also create opportunities for women to discuss experiences they may have kept to themselves for years.
Baun recalled her friendship with Nora Patella, a British World War II veteran who died in March at age 100.
A 16 Patella volunteered for the Auxiliary Territorial Service, the women’s branch of the British Army. She drove military trucks in Essex and helped care for wounded civilians and orphaned children during the Blitz in London.
She married American soldier Frank Patella in 1943 and came to the United States as a war bride in 1946. She later received three British wartime medals through the efforts of Northeast Ohio Women Veterans Unit 21.
“I started speaking to her, and she started opening up more about her experience, and she had never had that opportunity,” Baun said.
Patella’s family specifically thanked Baun for her friendship, care and support in her obituary.
Baun said younger veterans also need opportunities to share their experiences and connect with others who understand them.
“Our younger vets need that as well, and we try to meet them where they’re at,” she said.
Baun said preserving veterans’ personal histories is another important part of the organization’s work.
“If they don’t tell about their experience, who else is going to remember what happened?” she said.
Military Women Across the Nation was formerly known as WAVES National, an organization established in 1985 to bring together women who served in the Navy.
The organization expanded its membership to women from all branches of the military in 2015 and adopted its current name. Its mission includes educating women about veterans benefits, encouraging fellowship and preserving the history of women’s military service.
Baun's work on behalf of veterans has included serving as president of Northeast Ohio Women Veterans Unit 21, a regional representative for Military Women Across the Nation and chair of the Ohio Department of Veterans Services Women Veterans Advisory Committee.
Baun was inducted into the Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame in 2015.
She also is a lifetime member of AMVETS Post 44 in Struthers and a member of American Legion Post 301 in Austintown. She previously served as the only female commander of the United Veterans Council of Greater Youngstown and Its Environs and serves on the Mahoning Veterans Memorial Board of Trustees.
Baun said Ohio’s tradition of patriotism and the number of veterans returning to their home communities give the state a distinctive perspective in national veterans organizations. She noted that AMVETS recently elected another Ohioan, Sandy Vorhies of Columbus, as its national commander.
Baun said remembering those who served, particularly those who died, remains a responsibility for every generation.
Speaking at a Boardman memorial event, she urged people to remember the names of fallen service members.
“If I bring up someone who has fallen, it’s for a good reason,” she said. “Something they did made a huge impact, and it’s our obligation not to forget them.”