On Veteran’s Day, I wanted to take a moment to thank all of our Veterans and their families for their sacrifices, service to our country, and extraordinary dedication to duty. 

Women have and continue to make incalculable contributions to all branches of the military.  The two women highlighted below are just a small sample of the brave, dedicated, inspirational women veterans who have served our country.  To learn more about our women veterans, please visit Women at War, a special series honoring our women veterans as part of the Library of Congress project, Stories from the Veterans History Project.  This site includes wonderful audio and video interviews of many previously unknown women veterans and their stories.

Seconding Commanding Officer Violet Hill Gordon, 1942
War: World War II, 1939-1946
Branch: WAAC (Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps)
Unit: 32nd Company; 6888th Postal Battalion
Service Location: United States; England; France; European Theater
Rank: Captain
Place of Birth: Talihanee, OK
In summarizing her life experiences, Gordon makes a moving statement about how the Army pushed her in a positive direction. She feels that her experiences in the WAC changed her from a shy, introspective person into a leader. She speaks glowingly of the present day numbers of women of all colors, races, and ranks in active military service. Following is an excerpt from a video interview with Second Commanding Officer Violet Hill Gordon in 2002.

It is mind boggling to see a whole amphitheater of women representing all branches of the service (which was not true at the time that the WAC was formed) and to see the range both in age and rank because by and large those in attendance? certainly there were the retired and the women from World War II and subsequent wars, Viet Nam and what not? but the bulk of them were women who were on active duty, in all branches of the service, representing all colors, all races, and all ranks. It was something that I would have never envisioned in 1942 was right there in front of me. It was really so exciting. The final touch was the fly over of the Air Force with women pilots! [laughing] It was a great moment, a great moment!

Lieutenant Colonel Frances Liberty, 1962
War: World War II, 1939-1946; Korean War, 1950-1955; Vietnam War, 1961-1975
Branch: Army Nurse Corps
Rank: Lieutenant Colonel
Date of Birth: 1923
Place of Birth: Plattsburgh, NY

Following is an excerpt from a video interview with Lieutenant Colonel Liberty.

I came home after finishing my time at nursing school, and I said to my father, “I’m going to join the Army.” And he said, “No you’re not.” And I went down and joined. And I went back and told him, and he said to me, “You’ve made your bed; you’re going to have to lie in it now.” Which is, you know… So, [I] went to Fort Dix [New Jersey], and they gave us basic training. They weren’t really prepared to handle women. So we had basic training! We pitched tents, we hiked, we climbed walls, we crawled around in mud; we had people shooting at us, you know, under the barbed wire and all that stuff–that’s when I learned to keep my fanny down. [Landry laughs] And a sergeant finally gave me a bag of rocks to carry ’round in my left hand so I’d know enough to step out on my left. I got him later. And it was very invigorating, very rewarding. It was also very exciting for me. Remember, I came from [a] Catholic hospital and Catholic schools. So this was a big world to me, taking a shower with everybody else, you know, and all that stuff. That was different!

If you have children, please take a moment this evening to ask them about how they honored Veteran’s Day at school. If forgotten, please contact their teachers and school administrators to remind them that women are veterans too! Direct them to this website which has resources for students and teachers if they are unaware of the contributions of Women at War.