Celebrate Woman's History Month with Major Jennifer Woodard
Major Jennifer Woodard has been an officer with The Salvation Army for 25 years. She is a divisional level officer, which has her wearing many hats. She is currently responsible for three roles. The first is Divisional Women's Ministries Secretary, which allows her to encourage, support and communicate with Women’s Ministries groups across the division, and report activities and memberships to Territorial Headquarters. 
Her second role is as the Community Care Ministries Secretary. In this role, she encourages, supports and communicates with Community Cares Ministries and veteran outreach groups across the division.
Her third role is the Moral and Ethical Secretary, where she promotes, informs, and communicates current issues to the local worship and community centers across the division.
In the past 25 years, Major Woodard has been appointed to many locations across Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana and now Wisconsin. She has been with our division since June 2019.
Major Woodard said she heard her calling to become an officer when she was 12-years-old. When she was attending a Summer Bible Leadership Camp. When she serves, Woodard said she serves with great honor.
“Being an officer with The Salvation Army is exciting, exhausting, a great privilege, and I am constantly learning in personal growth and leadership,” Woodard said. “But most of all, humbling because of the trust given to the uniform, due to others' faithfulness before me.”
She continues to honor other’s faithfulness by providing one-on-one ministry to people, being there in the moments of most need (funerals, disasters, sadness, sickness, and grief). Major Woodard said this was her favorite part of becoming an officer.
If Major Woodard could share one thing the world should know about The Salvation Army, it’s that The Salvation Army is a reflection of God's heart for each person. She describes the organization as spiritual, physical, and social.
We asked Major Jennifer Woodard what her favorite scripture was and she said Ezekiel 36:26. "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh."
Major Woodard said she can be very stubborn and this scripture constantly encourages her because in it, God says that if she is willing, He will accomplish the work that is needed in her.
“I don't have to figure it out and discipline myself to be better,” Woodard said. “I don't even have to understand how He will accomplish it. I just need to actually desire and reflect on His heart and His Spirit in all things, and then I need to agree with Him and yield to His work in me.”
Each week, during March, we want to share the women who help spread the word of our Savior and help those during their darkest times. Look for more stories featuring our female officers coming next week!