Today we honor women who, for the first time in our history, "actively" served in the US Military. For a great resource and history of many more women who have served, please visit the Women in Military Service for America Memorial Foundation.
Margaret (Zane) Fleming Army Nurse Corps. 1941-45 and 1950-53
Margaret (Zane) Fleming and 12 other Army nurses with the 1st MASH (Mobile Army Surgical Hospital) landed on the beach at Inchon, Korea, on Sept. 15, 1950. Because mobile and evacuation hospitals followed the troops and extremely fluid battle lines, Army nurses often found themselves closer to the front than anticipated. As the 1st MASH moved from Inchon to Pusan with the 7th Infantry Division, they came under attack in the early morning of Oct. 9, 1950. During the battle, the nurses retreated to a roadside ditch. "The whole sky was lit up by gunfire and burning vehicles," reported Chief Nurse MAJ Eunice Coleman. "About sun up we got out of the ditch and started treating the wounded. All that day we worked on the roadside operating and treating for shock. We lost eight men and a number of supply vehicles." After the ambush, the nurses began calling themselves "The Lucky Thirteen."
Jeanne (Hamby) Gang American Red Cross, Dec. 1941-Aug. 1945 Army Special Services, Korean War
Jeanne (Hamby) Gang, a Piedmont, CA, native wanted to join the Navy Women’s Reserve (WAVES) during World War II, but was told that she was "too near-sighted." Instead, she joined the American Red Cross but was considered "too young" for overseas assignment, so she served as a recreational and social staff aide in Army and Navy hospitals in her home state. When the Korean War broke out, she volunteered for the Army Special Services and was sent to Germany for two years, where her first assignment was at the 7th Army Headquarters’ Pyramid Service Club. Gang then helped open the service club at Wharton Barracks in Heilbronn.
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