Hometown of AF first woman 4-star dedicates new high school in her honor

  • Published
  • By Kim Dawley
  • Air Force Materiel Command Public Affairs
WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFNS) --  Beavercreek City Schools dedicated its high school campus to Air Force Materiel Command Commander Gen. Janet Wolfenbarger, a 1976 Beavercreek graduate, in a ceremony held March 15.

The campus was renamed the "General Janet C. (Libby) Wolfenbarger Campus at Beavercreek High School." The school is located just a few miles from Wright-Patterson.

"It is our sincere hope that by naming this campus in your honor, our youth will be inspired by your example," Peg Arnold, member of the Beavercreek Board of Education, told Wolfenbarger during the ceremony. "We hope they will learn about your legacy, and see that hard work, responsibility, determination and love of country are ideals worth pursuing in their own lives."

The ceremony included the unveiling of plaques with a quote from Wolfenbarger that will be erected at the campus entrances, as well as presentations by several public officials.

Wolfenbarger has long-credited her education at Beavercreek High School for the providing her the foundation for her success, at the U.S. Air Force Academy, from which she graduated in 1980 in the first class with women cadets, and throughout her career.

"The impact that this institution had on me is invaluable," she said. "Beavercreek really did arm me with the tools to succeed. Although I don't believe that anyone can arrive at the Academy really ready for the incredible stress and pressure of that experience, thanks to the solid educational grounding that I received in these very halls, I truly had one less thing to be anxious about."

After reflecting on her own time as a Beavercreek student nearly 40 years prior, the general shared with the current students a lesson she has carried with her since her time at the Academy.

"I never dreamed, as I left Beavercreek High School and began my Air Force career, that one day I would come back to Dayton, Ohio, with four stars on my shoulder," Wolfenbarger said. "But I came out on the other side of my Academy experiences realizing I am far more capable than I ever thought I could be. So here's my message to you all: You are young. Your entire lives are ahead of you and you, too, can accomplish things that have you never dreamed of. I encourage you all to make life goals, to follow your dreams and to stretch yourself along the way. And if you truly dedicate yourself, you, too, will realize that you are far more capable than you ever thought you could be."

Wolfenbarger concluded her remarks at the ceremony by thanking the faculty, staff and friends of the school.

"I am truly proud to have my name added to the walls of this wonderful school and campus," she said. "This is a tremendous honor, and I mean that from my heart."