Taken to Tooken

This last month marked the one year anniversary of my mom's death at age 93. You might say she was taken from us but that word has a much bigger meaning in our family history.

Pins, like the one above, were available to Naval officers during World War II to give to their girlfriends or fiancés. This particular pin was given by my dad to my mom. They met while he was on leave in Detroit and she was working at the USO. It led to a nickname that stuck with my mom for the rest of her life.

I could tell you the story but you can hear it from her in the video below, produced by Museum of History and Holocaust Education at Kennesaw State University,

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The video is part of the Georgia Legacies of World War II Exhibit at the Museum. If you are interested, the Museum's profile of mom and her WWII experience can be found at this link.

Her background includes years at a Canadian boarding school, college interrupted by World War II, work at the FED and USO, a whirlwind romance that changed her name and resulted in a family with four boys, and induction into the American Rosie the Riveter Association. That's her below working at the USO.

The first photo and text are copyright Clinton Richardson. If you like these posts, please tell your friends about the Venture Moola blog at Readjanus.com. More of  our images can be found on our companion website at trekpic.com. Feel free to share this blog with your friends. The more readers the better. 

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