Saluting Our Grandmas: Women of World War II

by Cassie B. Barlow, Michael B. Turner (Foreword by)

Overview

“In this fascinating book, you will learn about a part of our country’s history that has not been thoroughly documented. I guarantee you will be proud of what these ‘grandmas’ did to serve America in a time of great need. In so doing, they carved a path that other women for many generations have since benefitted from. I include myself in that very grateful group of women who today stand on the shoulders of these awe-inspiring pioneers.”

—Gen. Janet C. Wolfenbarger, USAF (ret), first female four-star general in the Air Force,
chairperson of the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services

“A wonderful and heartwarming account that highlights the often untold stories of our female World War II veterans. This book ensures that their important legacy of service will be shared with future generations.”

—Sen. Bob Dole

Contributors to this unique memorial include the family of military women and those who preserve their history. They are Dr. Francoise Bonnell (director of the US Army Women’s Museum), Curt Dalton (visual resource manager at Dayton History), Terry Lee Harmon (daughter of Women Airforce Service Pilot Elaine Danforth Harmon), Earl Morse (founder of the Honor Flight Network, Inc.), Dr. Janet Butler Munch (professor and special collections librarian at Lehman College of the City of New York), and Dean and Anne Whiteford (son-in-law and daughter of US Army nurse Martha Miller).

A portion of the proceeds from this book will be donated to Honor Flight Dayton, an Ohio chapter of the Honor Flight Network, Inc. The cover art is by aviation artist Craig Kodera and features (clockwise) Elaine Danforth Harmon, Martha Miller, Dorothy Mae Wise, and Pauline Norfleet Hill.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781455623204
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	12/02/2022
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	176
File size:	50 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	3 Months to 11 Years

About the Author

A veteran of twenty-six years in the United States Air Force, coauthor Col. Cassie B. Barlow is one of a handful of women who has commanded at multiple levels of the Air Force.

While both of coauthor Sue Hill Norrod’s parents served in the military during World War II, she was especially inspired by her mother, Pauline, who served in the Navy’s WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) program. Norrod was her mother’s guardian on an Honor Flight trip for veterans.

Michael R. Turner is the US Representative for Ohio’s 10th congressional district.He is one of only two members of Congress to serve on the House Intelligence Committee and as a Subcommittee Chairman on the House Armed Services Committee.

 

Table of Contents

Foreword 9

Acknowledgments 11

Chapter 1 "Mail Call" Cards 15

Chapter 2 Asking Mom to Go on the Honor Flight 18

Chapter 3 Early Days of World War II 21

Chapter 4 Rationing 26

Chapter 5 Making Waves in the Bronx: The Story of the US Naval Training School at Hunter College 38

Chapter 6 Train Ride to New York City 41

Chapter 7 Boot Camp and Hunter College, 1944 43

Chapter 8 Sugar Camp and the Bombe 49

Chapter 9 Naval Air Station, Memphis, Tennessee 55

Chapter 10 Honor Flight Experience 64

Chapter 11 The Origin of the Honor Flight Network 102

Chapter 12 A View of History: Women and Military Service 108

Chapter 13 Elaine Danforth Harmon, WASP 141

Chapter 14 Martha Miller, US Army Nurse 155

Chapter 15 Dorothy Mae Wise, WAC 160

Chapter 16 The Call to Service 171

References and Books for Further Reading 174

Index 175

Editorial Reviews

06/01/2017
Gr 7 Up—So often it is the male soldiers of the "greatest generation" who are the subjects of books and films; this volume, however, focuses on the contributions of women in the military during World War II. Norrod's mother, Pauline, like many other young women, left home to enlist, serving in the Navy's WAVE (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) program. After boot camp in New York, Pauline was assigned to the naval air station in Memphis, where she worked as a mechanic. Years later, Pauline traveled to the World War II memorial in Washington, DC, as part of the Honor Flight Network, a nonprofit organization that arranges for veterans to visit memorials, and this episode is the emotional center of the title—Pauline talks with teenage girls about her service. Chapters contain basic information about the war: life on the home front; an overview of female military service, including women nurses, Women's Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs), and members of the Women's Army Corps (WAC); and the origins of the Honor Flight Network. Numerous archival and contemporary photographs appear throughout the work, breaking up the text. VERDICT Expanding the cultural view of military service, this is a useful addition to large U.S. history collections.—Patricia Ann Owens, formerly at Illinois Eastern Community College, Mt. Carmel

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