Work, Fight, Sacrifice!

On December 7, 1941, a day that would live in infamy, Pauline Peyton Forney, a mother of three, including a son who was serving in the Marines, knew her life was about to change. 

With over 2,300 Americans dead, more than a thousand wounded, and the US Navy’s Pacific Fleet crippled, President Roosevelt would soon be telling his fellow Americans that the United States was at war.

Over the next four years, millions of Americans would fight for democracy and freedom around the world. More than 400,000 would make the ultimate sacrifice.

Sacrificing For Family and Country

From 1941-1945, Pauline - and every individual, family, and community across America - endured unimaginable hardships and sacrifices. No one went untouched by the events unfolding on the battlefields, invasion beaches, and bombed-out cities of Europe, North Africa, and Asia.

With her first son soon deployed to the Pacific as a Marine, her second son joining the Army and heading to Burma, and her daughter married to a Marine fighter pilot, Pauline’s story was typical of countless women who had loved ones fighting and dying around the world.

Marines at Bougainville, where Pauline's eldest son, Edward, fought (PC: USMC)

Contributing to the war effort in any way they could, American women across the nation served in the military; worked in factories and shipyards building tanks, planes, and ships; and motivated their families and friends to stay strong and unified.

They kept the faith and insured that America’s young men had the support, prayers, and inspiration they needed during civilization’s darkest days.

Simply  put, these courageous, hard-working, and patriotic women played a key role in the allied victory. 

Rosie the Riveter

Pauline, who had lost her husband to a heart attack in 1944, followed daily news reports of battles in the Pacific, all the while hoping she didn’t get an official telegram or visit from the military.

Like most women of the greatest generation, she knew the meaning of sacrifice. She had lived through the Depression and had raised three children during those difficult years. 

But she never felt sorry for herself. Instead, she did what millions of other women did during World War II. She immersed herself in the war effort. At the age of 62, she became a “Rosie the Riveter.” Working double shifts at a plane factory, she spent as much time as she could with her fellow workers. It took her mind off her boys overseas and gave her pride in being part of America's effort to defeat fascism and tyranny. 

Women working at an airplane assembly during WW2 (PC: Library of Congress)

Answered Prayers

And when Pauline wasn’t working, she was writing and praying. She wrote hundreds of letters to her children, grandchildren, and friends. She seemed more concerned about others than herself. A devoutly religious woman, she also went to church daily. 

Her prayers were answered on August 15, 1945. The news that all Americans had been waiting for had finally arrived. The war was officially over. 

Pauline's sons eventually returned the States and continued serving their country. Her son-in-law, however, wasn't as lucky. Just weeks before the war ended, his Corsair malfunctioned and plummeted into the ocean. His body was never recovered.

By 1945, Pauline’s life, her daughter’s life, and the life of every American had changed forever. The United States had also changed. It was now the world’s leading superpower and economy and would soon be spending billions of dollars to rebuild Europe and Japan.

Women celebrating the end of WWII. (Photo credit: National Archives)

We, Too, Will Prevail

With social media sites and news outlets frequently talking about America’s 21^st century problems and predicting the decline of a once-great country, it’s easy to think we’ve lost our grit and no longer have the ability to overcome hardships and challenges.

But we haven’t. If we look back on history and remember those who went before us, we, too, will “keep our heads when all about us are losing theirs". . . and prevail.

As we commemorate the anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor and pay tribute to all the men who died on that fateful day, it’s also appropriate that we honor all American veterans who fought in WWII and those who supported them. We owe you so much.

Postscript

Pauline Forney died in 1985 at the age of 103. Her Marine son retired as a Brigadier General and died in 1965; her Army son retired as a Colonel and died in 1991; and her daughter remarried, had five children and passed away in 2000.