The first visible signs of the Memorial Day weekend began early Saturday morning. The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) started setting up their tables and chairs in front of local markets, soliciting donations in exchange for armed forces logos and artificial red poppies. Every year, I make the rounds and park myself among the vendors of war memories looking for a human interest story and Saturday was no exception.
I finally found the perfect location. Being in a wheelchair myself, most of the vets thought I was a veteran. I explained my situation and a half-dozen autobiographies seemed to pop up from everywhere.
I heard war stories relating to experiences in Korea and Vietnam. I listened to horror stories about veteran hospitals and exaggerated love stories that would make Hollywood envious.
Each veteran of war reminisced about their lost comrades in arms. Most of them thought the difference between life or death and getting wounded was just a matter of odds and luck.
Despite the hardships of war, the VA hospital was the conversational target of most of their complaints. Poor facilities, lack of an adequate nursing staff and doctors, they said, should have been replaced by veterinarians headed the list of things that needed to be resolved.
Some of the young veterans returning stateside from the Iraq conflict for medical care and rehabilitation soon found out exactly what they meant. On arrival, they found most VA facilities could not pass federal, state or local health department standards. After the exposure to TV cameras, former President George W. Bush and the Republican Senate acted quickly to plug the holes.
As the men started to catch their breath from all the conversation, a slightly built gray-haired woman handed me a red poppy and asked, “Can I get a word in, edge-wise, here?” She reminded the men they were not the only ones who either witnessed battle or who were close to the front lines in war. She said she served in the Women’s Army Corp and was proud of it. She said women’s reserves and auxiliaries served with every branch of the military since World War II and receive very little recognition for their efforts. A little research proves she was right.
The WAC was created in 1943. They were the first women, other than nurses, to serve with the Army. Combined with the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corp, more than 150,000 women enlisted during World War II. They were stationed in Europe, North Africa and even New Guinea. Just two weeks after our invasion on Normandy Beach, the WAC was there to support our fighting troops.
Records show that because of these 150,000 women who served during World War II, almost seven divisions of fighting men were freed up for combat. Gen. Douglas MacArthur said the WAC members were “my best soldiers, they were better disciplined than men, complained less and worked harder.” Adding to MacArthur’s praise, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower said of the women of the WAC, “Their contribution in efficiency, skill, spirit and determination are immeasurable.”
The WAC continued to serve during the Korean War. Twenty percent of the female volunteers served overseas in the far east theater. They worked in field hospitals close to the battle lines, served as communicators, cryptographers, translators, supply specialists, record keepers and administrators. They provided similar services during the Vietnam conflict from 1965 until 1972. The WAC was disbanded in 1978.
During the second World War, every branch of the military had its own version of a women’s reserve. The Navy had its female counterparts called the “Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Services,” or WAVES. The WAVES originated in August 1942 and performed similar duties as the WAC.
The Coast Guard also had a women’s reserve called SPARS. The name represents the Coast Guard’s motto “semper paratus” and is combined with its English translation, “always ready.” Even the “mighty” Marines were supported by women in the U.S. Marine Corp Women’s Reserve (USMCWR). And not to be outdone, the Air Force relied on the Women’s Air Force Service Pilots (WASP) to keep our fighters in the sky.
The little gray-haired woman made a good point: We shouldn’t forget the importance of our military women during the hard times of World War II. But since then, women in the military have been getting more recognition. Today, there are more opportunities for women who are compelled to fight and protect the American flag.
Starting in 1972, women were eligible to join the Reserve Officers Training Corp. That same year, the Army’s military academy at West Point started accepting female cadets and, in 1978, when the WAC was deactivated, females were allowed to join the regular army.
On this day, after our three-day holiday, most of us can probably say we paid little attention to the true meaning of respect, honor and memorials given to our fighting war dead. But for some of us who were mindful, we should have also remember the sacrifice, commitment and dedication of MacArthur’s “best soldiers.” We should have remembered our women of war and their immeasurable contribution to our World War II heroes and to our country.
