Wheaton College Alumni Magazine Autumn 2013 | Page 45

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A Military Marriage
by Annette Heinrich LaPlaca ’86

How does a match made in
R.O.T.C. thrive despite dual careers
and 19 moves in 32 years?

When Jody Hansen arrived
on campus in 1975, she became the
first woman at Wheaton on a four-year
R.O.T.C. scholarship. Donald Bradshaw
was also on a full R.O.T.C. scholarship,
studying chemistry with a pre-med
focus. Both took inspiration from then
President Hudson Armerding ’41, a
retired naval officer, for his “example
of servant leadership and integrity,”
says Jody. The two married before
Jody’s senior year—though Don had
already moved to Maryland to attend

medical school. Jody spent the next year
at Wheaton, seeing her new husband
infrequently. But Don and Jody had a
plan: married status would encourage the
Army to assign them together once Jody
graduated.
With a shared sense of adventure, they
embarked on a joint military career. “And
we loved every minute of it,” says Colonel
Jody Hansen Bradshaw ’79, who retired in
2002, after 23 years of military service,
when the timing seemed right for their

family, which now includes two daughters.
Brigadier General Donald Bradshaw ’77
retired in 2009 after 32 years in the Army.
During those years, the couple moved 19
times and was only separated for a total
of three years. Their careers included two
joint assignments in Germany, and one solo
assignment for Jody in Korea, where she
served as the first female G1/AG (the chief
of human resources) for the 2nd Infantry
Division.
Though professionally gratifying for Jody,
this time in Korea was perhaps the most
difficult season, since Don spent the time
working toward his master of public health
degree in Seattle while caring for their
infant daughter. With a student’s flexible
schedule, he made time to “take Katherine
to baby swim lessons, learn to fix her hair,
and push her for hours in her swing.”
Calling their marriage a true partnership,
Jody says, “The biggest challenge over the
years has been managing how we support
one another.”
Throughout her career, Jody worked in
human resources, at one point serving as
Battalion Commander in Germany with
responsibility for every aspect of training
and equipping soldiers.

In 1991, serving as officers in the U.S. Army, Don ’77 and
Jody Hansen Bradshaw ’79 each held the rank of major.

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Don practiced medicine for 15 years before
moving into hospital management. He
served as Commander of several military

hospitals, winning the “Best Hospital in
the Army” award for two consecutive
years.
Don and Jody found the Army a natural
place to live out their faith. “Basic Army
values are consistent with Christian
values,” says Don. “We work unto Christ
as opposed to working for a certain
commander or boss. The Army is about
service to God and country.”
Moving again, Don and Jody are
downsizing locally in Virginia near Don’s
work for a commercial company that
provides services for the United States
military and veterans’ healthcare.
Jody jumped from fulltime service in
the Army to homeschooling their first
daughter, and in 2003, the couple
adopted their second daughter, who has
special needs.
With one daughter now attending George
Washington University and the second
in elementary school, Jody says, “My
experience with training and leadership
development prepared me for my role
now—that of equipping my daughters for
lives of service in their own chosen fields.”
And so Don and Jody begin yet another
adventure with characteristic enthusiasm
and with one simple understanding:
“Wherever you land,” says Don, “God’s
in charge.”