5 Questions and Secret: Seal Rock resident is first woman to lead Oregon VFW organization

By KATHLEEN O’CONNOR/Lincoln Chronicle

Andrea Summerlin of Seal Rock made history last summer when she became the first woman to be elected as the Department Commander for the Oregon Veterans of Foreign Wars, the highest state role in the venerable organization.

Now she’s the woman at the top of an organization whose membership is 92 percent men.

Summerlin joined the Air Force one year after she finished high school in Gervais. Her best friend had already joined, and she became Summerlin’s personal recruitment officer.

Summerlin’s family moved often when she was growing up, attending four different high schools, including 1 1/2 years at Newport High. Those moves taught her to adapt to new places and make new friends quickly, good training for the mobility the military requires. Twenty years later Summerlin retired as a Master Sergeant after having been stationed in three foreign countries and three states, always working in health care administration. Because three of her tours were in Europe she found it easy to visit 29 countries.

Summerlin slowly earned her bachelor’s degree during her time in the Air Force, and went on to get a masters degree in social work after she retired. She currently works as a guidance counselor at  Angell Job Corps Center in Yachats and is an active member of VFW Post 4227 in Toledo.

Question: Please give us a little background information about the VFW.

Answer: The organization began back in 1899 when veterans of the Spanish-American War and the Philippine Insurrection banded together to try to secure rights for themselves, especially medical care. It grew very quickly and became a key player in establishing the Veteran’s Administration, developing a national cemetery system, creating a GI bill in the 20^th century and again in the 21^st century, and in winning compensation for Vietnam and Gulf War veterans.

The VFW is supported mostly by dues and fundraisers. Our biggest fund-raiser is the poppy sale at Memorial Day. We also seek grants and at our Toledo post we’ve had wonderful community support. This year the Siletz Tribe provided funds for a new roof for our building and last year Most Wanted Painters in Newport painted our building for us, with paint donated by Sherwin Williams.

Q: How does one qualify to be a member of the VFW?

A: Any person who has served in the military can join the American Legion, but only those who have served overseas during a time of conflict can join the VFW. I served two tours of duty in South Korea. There is no peace agreement between North and South Korea, only an armistice — the Korean War has not ended. Thus, the U.S. bases in South Korea are in a war zone, and everyone serving there is serving in a time of conflict. Tours of duty are rigid and demanding. Every base in South Korea is constantly in a state of readiness because there is no guarantee that the armistice will hold.

Q: What has it been like to be one of very few women involved in the VFW, and the only woman to serve in Oregon’s highest office?

A: Only six of the 140 members of Toledo Post 4227 are women. Men have, of course, typically been the ones who have served in wartime, and some posts have found it difficult to be inclusive of women. I was very lucky to meet John Wrinkle, who was then the commander of the Redmond post, at one of the first state meetings I attended. He later became Department Commander himself. He was welcoming, supportive, and encouraging … a wonderful mentor. I have tried to follow his example, working to include each wartime veteran who joins our post.

As a woman in this mostly male organization, I have encountered roadblocks, but my 20 years in the Air Force taught me to be tenacious and determined/stubborn, and now I am proud to be serving the top position in Oregon.

I recently attended a VFW legislative meeting in Washington D.C. and had the opportunity to meet several Oregon congressmen to discuss the veterans’ needs. It was such an exhilarating experience. As the Department Commander for Oregon, I have helped to complete the state office’s move from Portland to Salem which will make it dramatically easier for us to communicate with our state legislators.

Each Department Commander for Oregon gets to choose an area to focus on, and I chose suicide prevention and mental health. Both of those topics are close to my heart, and I have spoken about them publicly several times since my election in July.

Q: How did you decide to pursue counseling as a profession when you retired from the Air Force?

A: Helping people who are hurting seems to come naturally to me. My own life has included some periods of intense trauma, and I think those have sharpened and strengthened the empathy I have for people in all kinds of difficult situations. As a guidance counselor at the Job Corps I see young people with some rough backgrounds. Some are ready to embrace our program when they arrive, some aren’t. My job as counselor is to help them choose whatever course that is right for them.

Q: How do you spend your free time?

A: Right now I don’t have much of it. My son enjoys anime, and I have learned that there is a whole world of anime enthusiasts. I’ve been to a few events/conventions with him, and love to see the way the attendees’ imaginations can run wild.

I participated in a lot of sports in high school; my mom knew I was at least mildly ADD and the physical activity really helped me. I carried that forward, and in 2016 I joined the Portland Masters Track Club and started participating in masters track events. I mostly compete in throwing events —  shot put, discus and javelin. I would love to be able to qualify to participate in national and even international events.

I also like to write stories just like the one you are writing about me right now. I’ve had the opportunity to write letters of recommendation for several people in the military and in the VFW for national awards. It’s such an honor to write their stories, and it’s so wonderful when they win. I also have a lot of life stories in my head, and I hope to get them onto paper eventually.

Tell us a secret.

My mom was able to visit me at every one of my duty stations. She moved to Waldport after she retired, and my sister and I both followed her here.  She was my biggest supporter, and I miss her every day.

• Kathleen O’Connor is a Waldport freelance writer who can be reached via email at kmoc8916@gmail.com