church, as well as her service to her country, did not come through women's organizations, Christian education, or missionary work. McAfee was deeply interested in the role of religious groups and its ability to connect people, having written her master's thesis on religious movements. Her life's work emphasized religious organizations, and she was a member of the General Council of Congregational Christian Churches. Military service During World War II, McAfee took a leave of absence from Wellesley to direct the newly formed WAVES, a force that eventually numbered more than 80,000 women, both enlisted and officer. McAfee was commissioned as a lieutenant commander the following week, on 3 August, and quickly set down rules for enlisted women, including that they use only enough make-up "to look human". With others, she campaigned for WAVES to have the same pay and benefits as their male counterparts. These efforts resulted in Public Law 183, effective on 9 November 1943, which entitled all Women's Reserve personnel the allowances and benefits available to men. It also provided for one captain in the Women's Reserve; Lieutenant Commander McAfee was promoted to captain later that same month. She succeeded in integrating women of color into the U.S. Naval Reserve Officer Corps and enabled them to serve in many areas and capacities while their male counterparts were limited to serving as cooks and bakers. She ensured that women of color would be treated like any of the other WAVES and assigned as officers in various companies. During the peak of World War II, Captain McAfee commanded 82,000 women. In 1945, McAfee was featured on the cover of Time for a job "well done". After the war, McAfee resigned from the Naval Reserve. She was the first woman to receive the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, presented to her by Navy Secretary Forrestal on 7 November 1945. She also received the American Campaign Medal and the World War II Victory Medal. Personal life and death In August 1945 she married the Reverend Dr. Douglas Horton (died 1968), the dean of the divinity school at Harvard University, and took on her husband's last name becoming Mildred Helen McAfee Horton. However, the work that she accomplished as a single woman, prior to her marriage, set her apart from many women of her time, whose husbands' work tended to open doors and overshadow women's accomplishments. In 1948, McAfee was asked to address the