Born and raised in Florida, Marie Deanie Bishop grew up with a determination to prove herself. On her twenty-first birthday Deanie, who had learned to fly, reached the age requirement for admission to the WASP program and applied that day. After acceptance, Deanie...
McCloughan spent his childhood in Bangor, Michigan, where his parents moved to take over a family farm. It was there that he found his passion for sports and music. The consummate athlete, McCloughan was a four-sport varsity athlete at Bangor High School and went on...
Born in a Missouri farmhouse in 1901, Buckles lied about his age to enlist in the Army at 16. “I was interested in the war,” he explained during a 2001 interview with the Library of Congress’ Veterans History Project. “I’d been reading the newspapers since I was a...
Like many Baby Boomers, Jayne Cooley had a father who served in World War II, but she had no designs on a career in the military. However, in 1978, a friend persuaded her to join the Army Reserves for a chance to supplement her income as a private duty nurse. Twelve...
Charles Blount was often the last person to see a paratrooper as he dove out of the plane over a drop zone. “I counted them as they went out,” Blount says, detailing the events that took place aboard his plane in the early morning hours of June 6, 1944....
