Jerry Rita Jolliff Brunton Oral History

Details

Who's responsible?: Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, UNCG University Libraries (Repository)
How much has been digitized?: This collection has been digitized in its entirety.
What's in the full collection?: The collection includes an oral history transcript, 24 July 2015; documents related to Women Veterans of Coastal North Carolina, undated; postcards and calendars related to the Women's Memorial in Washington, D.C., undated; a document reflecting on the North Carolina Veterans Day Parade in Morehead City, written by Brunton, November 2011; a WAVES jacket, t-shirt, sweatshirt, and polo shirt; various books related to WAVES.
Full biography: Jerry Rita Jolliff Brunton (b. 1931), of Marysville, Ohio, served as a PBX (Private Branch Exchange) Switchboard Operator in the Navy WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service) from 1950-1951. Jerry Rita Jolliff Brunton was born 22 April 1931 in Union County, Ohio. She graduated from high school in 1949, and enlisted in the Navy WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service) in 1950, first as a reservist for six months and then transferred as active duty. Brunton attended basic training at Naval Air Station Columbus in Ohio, and then was assigned to the same base for her first duty station. Her primary responsibility was in communications, working as a PBX (Private Branch Exchange) Switchboard Operator. Brunton met her husband at the naval air station and they were married in 1951. She soon became pregnant and was forced to resign from the WAVES. Brunton's husband was assigned to Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, Kansas, where they relocated, and she had her first son in 1952. In 1987, Brunton received her nursing degree from Northeast Alabama Community College, and was certified as a holistic nurse in the following years. In January 2011, Brunton helped organize Women Veterans of Coastal North Carolina, a group dedicated to bringing together women military veterans and active duty women in all branches of the United States Armed Forces. She is also a lifetime member of WAVES National, Unit#144 Raleigh.
Topics: Women's History
Military
Branch of service: Navy -- WAVES
Conflict: Post World War II, Korea (1947-1963)
Subject headings: Korean War, 1950-1953
United States. Navy--Women
Contributing Institution: Martha Blakeney Hodges Special Collections and University Archives, UNCG University Libraries

: Oral History interview with Jerry Rita Jolliff Brunton; Primarily documents the life of Jerry Rita Jolliff Brunton and her service with the United States Navy WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service). Personal topics include experiencing sexual harassment during basic training, meeting her future husband at her first duty station, and being forced to withdraw from the WAVES due to her pregnancy. Brunton discusses her belief that women in the military should be afforded the same opportunities as men, the importance for women to have recognition as veterans, and the need for veterans to be aware of the benefits they are entitled to.

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Women Veterans Historical Project

Jerry Rita Jolliff Brunton Oral History

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