You Go Girl!

Posted November 14, 2008, 5:05 am in Veterans


Army Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody has shattered the so-called brass ceiling by becoming the first woman in the U.S. military to achieve the rank of four-star general.

The 55-year-old soldier grew up in a family of highly decorated military men. She was pinned with her fourth star at a Pentagon ceremony last week as her huband looked on. He served in the Air Force for 26 years.

At the cermony, Dunwoody said this was not how she pictured her life unfolding.

"It was clear to me that my Army experience was just going to be a two-year detour en route to my fitness profession," she said. "So when asked, 'Ann, did you ever think you were going to be a general officer, to say nothing about a four-star?' I say, 'Not in my wildest dreams.'

"There is no one more surprised than I -- except, of course, my husband. You know what they say, 'Behind every successful woman there is an astonished man.'"

After her promotion, she made the short trip to Fort Belvoir, Va., where she was sworn in as commander of the Army Materiel Command. She'll be responsible for equipping, outfitting and arming all soldiers. How important is the AMC? If a soldier shoots it, drives it, flies it, wears it or eats it, AMC provides it.

A Pentagon spokesman says Dunwoody has made it clear that she feels no need for special acclaim. But it's special enough that Defense Secretary Robert Gates attended her standing-room only promotion ceremony.

Dunwoody issued a statement saying she was humbled. "I grew up in a family that didn't know what glass ceilings were," she said. "This nomination only reaffirms what I have known to be true about the military throughout my career -- that the doors continue to open for men and women in uniform."

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