Clare Stevenson

Clare Grant Stevenson
Group Officer Clare Stevenson, RAAF Headquarters, 1944
Nickname(s)	"Steve"
Born	18 July 1903 Wangaratta, Victoria
Died	22 October 1988(1988-10-22) (aged 85) Sydney, New South Wales
Allegiance	Australia
Service/branch	Royal Australian Air Force
Years of service	1941–46
Rank	Group Officer
Commands held	Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Member of the Order of Australia Member of the Order of the British Empire
Other work	Executive, Berlei Founder President, Carers NSW

Clare Grant Stevenson, AM, MBE (18 July 1903 – 22 October 1988) was the inaugural Director of the Women's Auxiliary Australian Air Force (WAAAF), from May 1941 to March 1946. As such, she was described in 2001 as "the most significant woman in the history of the Air Force". Formed as a branch of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) in March 1941, the WAAAF was the first and largest uniformed women's service in Australia during World War II, numbering more than 18,000 members by late 1944 and making up over thirty per cent of RAAF ground staff.

Born and educated in Victoria, Stevenson was an executive with the Berlei company when she was appointed Director WAAAF. Initially ranked squadron officer, she rose to become group officer by April 1942. Stevenson resumed her civilian career following her discharge from the Air Force in 1946. Long active in adult education and social welfare, she helped form aid organisations including the Carers Association of New South Wales (now Carers NSW) after retiring from Berlei in 1960. Stevenson was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire and a Member of the Order of Australia for her services to the community and to female veterans.

Born on 18 July 1903 in Wangaratta, Victoria, Clare Grant Stevenson was the fifth of six children of Robert Logan Grant Stevenson and his wife Ada Pollie, née Griffiths. When Clare was four her family moved to Essendon, where she attended Winstow Girls' Grammar School and Essendon High School, completing her intermediate and leaving certificates. In 1922, she entered the Faculty of Science at the University of Melbourne, but switched to education after failing chemistry in her final year. Stevenson was a hockey blue and was active in several campus groups, including the Students' Representative Council and the Science Club. She became President of the Committee of Melbourne University Women, and graduated in 1925 with a Diploma of Education.