Photo album: Whether it's piloting a jet, standing guard in a war zone, or rising through the ranks, Penn Staters are continuing a long tradition of serving their country in the armed forces. This year, as part of its Military Appreciation Week, Penn State will celebrate 100 years of women officially serving in the U.S. military.
This is the fourth and final photo album depicting female Penn Staters serving in the United States military. During the past four weeks Penn State has featured a new gallery of images showing women in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines and National Guard. These photos have been featured on Penn State News.
This year's Military Appreciation Week at the University begins with a Penn State football game on Oct. 27 leading up to Veterans Day on Nov. 11. This year's theme will recognize 100 years of women officially serving in the U.S. armed forces with special events and activities, including a community football tailgate, library showcase, speaker events and more. For additional information, visit militaryappreciation.psu.edu.
The previous photo albums of Penn State women serving in the military can be found here: Album No. 1, Album No. 2, and Album No. 3.
U.S. Navy Lt. Jennifer Bennie is shown beside a SH-60B helicopter she flew in the North Arabian Gulf during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Bennie, whose helmet is adorn with a Nittany Lion sticker, is a 1999 Penn State graduate in accounting. She also was a member of the Naval ROTC program while at the University.
U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Gwen Mitchell, operations officer for Amphibious Squadron Four, discusses potential future operations for the USS Iwo Jima and embarked Marines with a headquarters liaison. Mitchell is a 2001 Penn State graduate with a degree in marketing.
Army Specialist Jessica Palmer captures a glimpse of herself and her unit rolling out from an airfield, while atop a HUMVVE as the .249 gunner, during a rotational training at the Fort Irwin National Training Center in California. Palmer is currently on a nine-month rotational training in South Korea and serves as a behavioral health technician at Fort Stewart, Georgia. Palmer earned a psychology degree from Penn State in 2013.
Dorothy Butala is shown in this photo as a lieutenant, but left the U.S. Army as a captain, having served from 2002 through 2008. The image shows Butala briefing her platoon during a training exercise in Iraq. Her platoon and one other were tasked as hazardous response teams for the First Cavalry Division deployment. They went through rigorous training for the mission before leaving the U.S. and continued training while deployed. The division was trained to deal with military-grade biological and chemical weapons, and also was trained on toxic industrial chemicals and materials. Butala is a 2002 speech communication graduate from Penn State.
Army Major Rhea (Braithwaite) Rollman, executive officer/deputy commander of the Fort Carson Warrior Transition Battalion. The battalion provides care and leadership to seriously ill, injured and wounded soldiers. Rollman is shown providing the opening remarks to soldiers and families during the battalion's Organizational Day. Rollman is a 1999 Penn State graduate.
Navy Lt. Yvonne Zirrith is shown in the flight line in Taji, Iraq while waiting to board a CH-47 Chinook helicopter (in the background) to get to an outlying camp. Zirrith's daughter Kaitlyn currently is a sophomore public relations/business major in the College of Communications at Penn State's University Park campus. Zirrith's husband and son plan to attend Penn State, as well.
Army Lt. Col. Sky Graybill is shown during her deployment to Afghanistan to work in a military hospital in the Helmand province. Graybill is a 2002 Penn State graduate in pre-medicine.
Polin Cohanne, shown far right with friends, was on active duty with the United States Marine Corps from 1975-78. Cohanne graduated from Penn State in 1972 with a degree in American studies.
Carolyn Blake, an active-duty petty officer first class in the United States Navy, is shown at the Seabee Ball in Virginia Beach in March 2017. Blake earned her bachelor's degree in classic and ancient Mediterranean studies from Penn State in December 2013.
U.S. Army nurse Caryl (Lewis) Schmitz is shown with her mother and father pinning on her bars as a second lieutenant immediately following her commissioning ceremony. Schmitz graduated from Penn State in 1985 with a bachelor's degree in nursing and was commissioned from Penn State's Army ROTC program.
United States Navy Petty Officer Second Class Courtney Hoopert is pictured (right) with a fellow officer after returning from a two-year deployment from Japan. Hoopert is currently a sophomore kinesiology major at Penn State Berks. Her ultimate goal is to become a physical therapist and help wounded warriors.
U.S. Air Force A1C Kristen Leveto is shown working with her civil engineering unit building an aircraft hangar. Leveto is a brand manager - content strategy for Penn State World Campus.
U.S. Army Capt. Kristen Riedel, a military intelligence officer, is shown at home on break during a yearlong deployment to Afghanistan. Riedel's son was turning 2, and she was nine months into the deployment. She was serving as the senior intelligence officer for the 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault). Riedel is a 2005 Penn State graduate in political science, and was commissioned into the Army through the Penn State Army ROTC program.