Civilian life offers multiple challenges for women veterans in Duval

By Beth Reese Cravey

For women veterans in Duval County, finding adequate employment, financial stresses and mental health challenges are the leading barriers to building successful civilian lives after military service, according to the results of a recent survey.
The survey was the first phase of RestorHER, a two-year research project by Jacksonville-based nonprofit Northeast Florida Women Veterans and the University of Florida Psychology Department and funded by the Women’s Giving Alliance of the Community Foundation for Northeast Florida.
In the next phase, a system of care and services will be developed that responds to the survey results.
“We have a lot of work to be done,” said veteran Deloris “Dee” Quaranta, founder and executive director of the women veterans group. Survey results were released last week as part of the group’s Women’s Veterans Recognition Week program.
A total of 1,088 participants were recruited from social media, job fairs, Veterans Affairs clinics and health fairs. They were asked what gender-specific issues they faced, what services they most need and how easy existing services are for them to find and use. Duval was targeted because it has the highest number of female veterans in the state, with about 15,000.
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