Sarah Byrn Rickman's Blog, page 3
June 28, 2022
Book Launch – Jean Landis WASP Pilot, July 16
Jean Landis WASP Pilot – 2,500 Miles … Long Beach to Newark in a P-51, my latest book in the WASP/WAFS Pilot Series,
will officially debut Saturday, July 16, at 1:30 pm Central Daylight Time – on ZOOM. The Zoom connection will be coming direct from the WASP Museum in Sweetwater, Texas – the official home of the WASP of World War II.
Those of you who live in other time zones, please take note and readjust as needed. I hope the Saturday date doesn’t interfere with your attending, but if it does, my marketing guru Mary will post the video recording soon after. There is a reason for the July 16 date. I also will be appearing at the WASP Museum later that afternoon with Honey Fulton Parker, younger sister of Original WAFS Dorothy Fulton.
WAFS Dorothy Fulton’s Exhibit to Debut That Same DayDorothy’s exhibit in the museum is debuting that same day and Museum Director Lisa Taylor invited me to join Honey for the festivities. Honey and I go back twenty years, when I was writing The Originals: The Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron of WWII – my first book. Dorothy is not only featured in the book she happens to be one of the seven WAFS pictured on the cover.
Dorothy Fulton WAFS PilotI went to New Jersey in 2004 to meet Honey and interview her as well as one of her sister Dottie’s flight students from before WWII – Peter Jacullo. Yes, Dottie was teaching flying before entering the WAFS in the fall of 1942. Honey and I met again in Washington D.C on March 10, 2010, when the WASP were honored as recipients of the Congressional Gold Medal, given to civilians who served our country .
For those who are not aware, the Congressional Gold Medal is an award bestowed by the United States Congress. It is Congress’s highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions by individuals or institutions.[1]The congressional medal seeks to honor those, individually or as a group, “who have performed an achievement that has an impact on American history and culture that is likely to be recognized as a major achievement in the recipient’s field long after the achievement.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Congressional_Gold_Medal
My Pleasure to Deliver WAFS’ Gold Medals to Two FamiliesPlease remember, the WASP were not officially militarized until 1977 – thirty-three years after they were dismissed and sent home with absolutely no recognition. Honey was there to pick up Dorothy’s medal. I was there on behalf of two WAFS families. I was planning to go to the event and offered to pick up Gold Medals awarded to two original WAFS, one of whom I knew well and both of whom I have written about.
I picked up Dorothy Scott’s medal for her nephew Tracy Scott, son of Dorothy’s beloved twin brother, Ed. Sadly, Dorothy Scott was one of the WAFS who died on active duty in WWII. I picked up Nancy Batson Crews’ Gold Medal for her two sons, Paul Jr. and Radford, and her daughter Janey. Nancy was my friend and my beloved mentor. She asked me to write The Originals and then made it possible to do so. It was she who inspired me to continue writing books about the WAFS and eventually the WASP.
And then, of course, there is Jean Landis, subject of my latest book. She is the first of these women pilots I have written about who did not begin as a WAFS. Rather, Jean was a member of WASP Class 43-4 – the largest class to earn their WASP wings and graduate from right there in Sweetwater.
Jean Landis One of 134 WASP Pursuit Ferry PilotsJean Landis also has the distinction – though not “an Original WAFS” – of having flown PURSUIT!!! Yep, she was one of the 134 WASP who graduated from Pursuit School and went on to ferry the U.S.’s finest fighter aircraft across the skies of wartime America. These women did NOT fly abroad, as some misinformed individuals have claimed. Usually guys who thought they saw women ferry pilots in the Pacific or in England. Not so. Every WASP will tell you that. The guys must have been dreaming. Wishful thinking.
Stationed with the Ferry Command at Long Beach, Jean was one of the lucky ones. She flew P-51s – manufactured at North American Aviation in Inglewood – from Long Beach to Newark daily! These gals’ trips could be as short as three days – 2½ days east if the weather was perfect and a day to get home via American Airlines out of La Guardia. Or it could take more than a week if the weather was foul – which, Jean will tell you it frequently was.
Read About Her First Pursuit Flight in Chapter OneBut this lady was in love with the Mustang from day one and cherished every trip she made in one. Chapter One will tell you about her very first P-51 flight at Pursuit School. Hold on to your hats guys and gals, it’s a classic.
If we’re lucky, Jean – who is 103 – might make an appearance on the launch. For now we’ll hope so.
See you July 16!!!
Thank you for reading my books! You can find all 12 of them on Amazon at this link.
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June 4, 2022
WATCH FOR RESCHEDULED BOOK LAUNCH
Well we didn’t get the Jean Landis WASP Pilot book launch done, did we! May 18 was a BIG DAY on my calendar, but Covid did me in. Rather than subject you to my raspy bass voice, we decided it best to wait until later. July is now the target! Date still to be determined. But the National WASP WWII Museum in Sweetwater and I are working on it! TBA!!!
Jean Landis WASP Pilot – 2,500 Miles…Long Beach to Newark in a P-51 is out there and available from the WASP Museum and on Amazon, BUT we’re still anxious to introduce you to some of the people who helped make the book – and will make the Zoom launch – happen. And Jean, herself, sends her “hello’s” to you all. What a terrific lady she is! I’m hoping her great nephew Devin and his wife Jeanne of American Dream Cinema will be able to attend. They were already booked when the May date was scheduled.
STAY TUNED for JEAN LANDIS!!!We will notify everyone in plenty of time to sign up – again! I sure hope you’ll join us!
JEAN LANDIS WASP PILOT is written for today’s young women in schools across America!!!
To bring you up to date. My bout with Covid made me very very tired. I’m slowly regaining my energy. Otherwise, it’s been much like having an old-fashioned cold. The enforced quarantine was a bit lonesome, but with Zoom I’ve managed to stay in touch with friends and with the weekly meeting of writing group. And my neighbors walk by every day and wave – when we weren’t having our big, wet Colorado spring snows. Since I have a roomy porch set up and back from the sidewalk, it’s easy for them to stop and chat without getting too close. We keep a healthy distance! But now my quarantine is OVER!
Oh boy, have I missed going to the gym!!! Next week!!!!!
BOOK #13 IN THE WORKS!Believe it or not, I’m already working on book Number 13, with ideas for #14 rattling around in my head. And Mary, my marketing manager, and I are working on big book marketing plans for this summer!!!
It will be so good to “see” you, so to speak, in July. We’ll announce the LAUNCH DATE HERE once we have it locked in!
I repeat – STAY TUNED!
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May 9, 2022
COVER REVEAL: JEAN LANDIS, WASP PILOT
JEAN LANDIS WASP PILOT, 2,500 MILES … LONG BEACH TO NEWARK IN A P-51
Presenting: My twelfth book about the WAFS and WASP – the American women pilots who flew for the U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II.
Jean Landis WASP Pilot is not only my twelfth book, it is #5 in my Young-Adult-Readers-focused series “The WAFS and WASP of the Ferry Command, WWII.” Believe it or not, these last five books are written to appeal to BOTH adult and young adult audiences. But, you ask, “Why and How?” would these books appeal to both?
THESE BOOKS ARE REAL
The events that take place in these books are real. They happened. Nothing is made up. These stories come from the women themselves, from interviews or oral histories I or someone else recorded. The WASP Archives at the Texas Woman’s University Library, Denton, houses nearly all of these. Some stories come from their fellow WAFS/WASP, others from their families. I’ve worked with several families over my 20-plus years of writing these books. I worked with Jean, herself – now age 103 — and with her great nephew Devin Scott and his wife, Jeanne. I did oral history interviews with Jean for TWU in 2012 and again in 2014. The latter is recorded on film. Thank you Bob Summers! There’s a copy at TWU. And this author has her own precious copy! And I had access, via Devin and Jeanne Scott, to their 2010 award-winning film
from American Dream Cinema, She Wore Silver Wings, Jean’s incredible story and her reminiscences of the WASP years. What a documentary that is! Well worth watching!
“AN INSPIRATION TO EVERY LITTLE GIRL WHO HAS A DREAM!”
I hope you’ll read Jean Landis’ story. Devin – who has known her all his life – pays this wonderful tribute to her: “I’m so proud of my Aunt Jean. She’s an inspiration to every little girl who has a dream.”
This author hopes this book, too, will inspire today’s young women to look to the future and dream – maybe about airplanes and aerospace!
WATCH FOR THE JEAN LANDIS BOOK LAUNCH, MAY 18 — COURTESY OF THE WASP MUSEUM! The National WASP WWII Museum, located at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas,
is where WASP Classes 43-3 through 44-10 trained and, like Jean, graduated with their silver wings. Classes 43-1 and 43-2 trained at the Municipal Airport in Houston, prior to the opening of Avenger Field to the women.
CLASS 43-4 WINGS – PRESENTED TO JEAN LANDIS AND HER CLASSMATES AT GRADUATION, AUGUST 7, 1943. PHOTO BY JONATHAN TURNER, TEXAS WOMAN’S UNIVERSITY, AND USED WITH THE ARCHIVES’ PERMISSION.
Watch for notification of the book launch from the Museum soon.
From Sarah: Thank you for reading my books!
April 16, 2022
COVER REVEAL: JEAN LANDIS, WASP PILOT
Presenting: My twelfth book about the WAFS and WASP – the American women pilots who flew for the U.S. Army Air Forces in World War II.
Jean Landis WASP Pilot is not only my twelfth book, it is #5 in my Young-Adult-Readers-focused series “The WAFS and WASP of the Ferry Command, WWII.” Believe it or not, these last five books are written to appeal to BOTH adult and young adult audiences.
But, you ask, “Why and How?” would these books appeal to both?
THESE BOOKS ARE REALThe events that take place in these books are real. They happened. Nothing is made up. These stories come from the women themselves, from interviews or oral histories I or someone else recorded. The WASP Archives at the Texas Woman’s University Library, Denton, houses nearly all of these. Some stories come from their fellow WAFS/WASP, others from their families. I’ve worked with several families over my 20-plus years of writing these books.
I worked with Jean, herself – now age 103 — and with her great nephew Devin Scott and his wife, Jeanne. I did oral history interviews with Jean for TWU in 2012 and again in 2014. The latter is recorded on film. Thank you Bob Summers! There’s a copy at TWU. And this author has her own precious copy! And I had access, via Devin and Jeanne Scott, to their 2010 award-winning film from American Dream Cinema, She Wore Silver Wings, Jean’s incredible story and her reminiscences of the WASP years. What a documentary that is! Well worth watching!
“AN INSPIRATION TO EVERY LITTLE GIRL WHO HAS A DREAM!”I hope you’ll read Jean Landis’ story. Devin – who has known her all his life – pays this wonderful tribute to her:
“I’m so proud of my Aunt Jean. She’s an inspiration to every little girl who has a dream.”
This author hopes this book, too, will inspire today’s young women to look to the future and dream – maybe about airplanes and aerospace!
WATCH FOR THE JEAN LANDIS BOOK LAUNCH, MAY 18 — COURTESY OF THE WASP MUSEUM!The National WASP WWII Museum, located at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas, is where
WASP Classes 43-3 through 44-10 trained and, like Jean, graduated with their silver wings. Classes 43-1 and 43-2 trained at the Municipal Airport in Houston, prior to the opening of Avenger Field to the women.
Watch for notification of the book launch from the Museum soon.
From Sarah: Thank you for reading my books!
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February 18, 2022
National Museum of World War II Aviation — Colorado Springs
Last Saturday (February 12), I met an amazing woman — a woman who proved to be very much akin to the WAFS and WASP of World War II, Dr. Monica Agnew-Kinnaman. She’s known to her friends as Nikki and, like the WAFS and WASP, she is a veteran of WWII. “Nikki” turned 104 on February 12. The National Museum of World War II Aviation, located here in Colorado Springs
threw her a surprise birthday party!
At age twenty-one, she served in the British Royal Artillery during the Battle of Britain — July-September 1940. Nikki and the other women who served in the anti-aircraft gun crews worked as spotters, tracking incoming German aircraft, and as artillery analysts. Dr. Agnew-Kinnaman (she later earned a PhD in psychology) first volunteered as a nurse. Feeling she wasn’t doing enough, she joined the British Army and rose to the rank of captain.
Sarah with “Dr. Monica” at her 104th birthday party.WHERE TO POINT AND WHERE TO AIM
These women volunteers didn’t actually fire the guns, says Gene Pfeiffer, historian and museum curator. As the German planes came in over London, the women did the calculations determining where to point and aim the guns.
She was a Brit back then, but Nikki now lives here in Colorado Springs. A life-long dog-lover, one who has rescued many dogs in her lifetime, she’s written several books about those rescue dogs.
The museum also honored six other local WWII veterans at the party. All men, they served in the various branches of America’s military. Nikki and “the guys” all told stories of their service, much to the delight of the crowd on hand to honor them all and celebrate with her.
I WISH WASP MILLIE YOUNG COULD HAVE BEEN THERE
All I can say is, I wish my good friend Millie Peterson Young — a WASP in World War II and a long-time Colorado Springs resident — had lived to be part of this. Had she still been with us, she would have been there. The volunteers at the museum knew her. Sadly, we lost Millie in January 2019. And —FYI— had she lived, Millie would be turning 100 this coming December 22.
WASP Millie Young talks with Sarah’s grandson, Daniel, at Women in Aviation, Reno, 2018.
A big thank you to my friend and neighbor, Robbie Dale Nelson, who invited me to accompany her and attend this delightful function at the museum. Robbie Dale also took the photo of me with Nikki that you see above.
An outstanding day for the museum … and for Colorado Springs!
The National Museum of World War II Aviation, located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, opened to the public in 2012. The museum documents the role that military aviation played in the emergence of our nation as a world power. The museum tells the story of the tremendous technological advancements in aviation during the War and the contributions and sacrifices of the men and women who won the air war.
MODERN EXHIBIT GALLERIES, WORLD-CLASS AIRCRAFT RESTORATIONLocated on a 21-acre campus at the Colorado Springs Airport, the museum features modern exhibit galleries, aircraft display, hangars and workshops and offers guided tours of a world-class aircraft restoration.
The focal point of the experience, though, is the museum’s incredible collection of World War II aircraft. The collection includes several extremely rare examples, some with documented combat history. Most of these aircraft are meticulously restored to flying condition and are flown at air shows and on demonstration days at the museum.
I’m proud to say , this was my third visit — but the first to the “new” museum building. I took a tour with a group of friends pre-Covid and I also accompanied my grandson, Daniel, and his class on a visit before that. I expect to return for another visit soon! And, I’m hoping the museum store will soon be carrying my books!
HERE’S THE MUSEUM’S WEBSITE: www.worldwariiaviation.orgThe Museum has been officially recognized by Congress as America’s National WWII Aviation Museum. Signed into law as part of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, the designation acknowledges the museum’s historical significance and its standing among the elite museums that are dedicated to preserving our nation’s rich aviation heritage.
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Thank you for reading my blog and Taking Flight , my newsletter … and for reading my books about the WASP.
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February 11, 2022
The WAFS and How They Came to Be (Part 2)
Nancy Love Takes Command of the WAFS By Sarah Byrn Rickman, WASP Author and Historian
Part 2 (Continued from last week) Summer 1942, Colonel Tunner hires Nancy Love to recruit women ferry pilots, write their training syllabus and establish requirements to qualify for this new squadron.
Colonel Tunner wanted the women pilots to ferry the 175-horsepower Primary trainers (PT-19s) built at Fairchild Aircraft in nearby Hagerstown, Maryland. He appointed Colonel Robert Baker commandant of New Castle AAB, home of the 2ndFerrying Group, Wilmington, Delaware, and placed the new women pilot recruits under Baker’s command. Tunner worked closely with Baker on the logistics of bringing the women to New Castle. The base was under construction, but Baker found living quarters for the women and offered them privileges in the new officers’ mess.
Getting the base ready for the women took time. Finally, they received an OK to move forward. This came from General Arnold through his staff. On September 5, 1942, Nancy Love and Colonel Baker sent recruiting telegrams to 83 American women – ages 21 to 35. These were the women Love thought had the qualifications to qualify for the squadron.
On September 10, 1942, Secretary of War Henry Stimson announced Mrs. Love’s appointment. She would lead a group of civilian women pilots who would ferry (move/deliver) trainer aircraft for the Ferrying Division, Air Transport Command, U.S. Army Air Forces. Their name: Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron or WAFS. Stimson then introduced Mrs. Love and General Harold L. George, head of the Air Transport Command, to the public and press.
Betty Gillies First WAFS Pilot AcceptedBetween September 7, 1942, and January 23, 1943, 27 more women qualified as WAFS. Women’s future in military aviation hung on how these 28 women performed professionally and conducted themselves socially and morally.
Veteran flyer Betty Gillies was the first woman to apply and be accepted.
That is how the WAFS began and how they became the AAF’s first squadron of 28 women pilots.
While Nancy Love built her squadron in Wilmington, fall of 1942, another well-known woman pilot, Jacqueline Cochran, persuaded General Arnold to let her build a larger cadre of women pilots. These women learned to fly “the Army way” using the same training program currently employed to teach male cadets. Upon graduation, the women were to be sent to ferry aircraft for Nancy Love and the Ferrying Division.
Women’s Flying Program Begins to GrowOn November 3, 1942, Cochran and Gen. Barton K. Yount—head of the Army Air Forces (AAF) Flying Training Command in Fort Worth, Texas—selected Aviation Enterprises at Howard Hughes Field, Houston Municipal Airport, to be the home of the newly established Women’s Flying Training Detachment (WFTD).
The first class of 29 women entered training November 16, 1942. They averaged 315 flying hours and several were qualified instructors. They were the most experienced flyers to enter the WFTD training facility. Only the original WAFS had more experience. Twenty-three graduated April 24, 1943, and headed for their assignments in the Ferrying Division.
The second class reported December 13, the third class January 16, 1943, and from there on a new class reported monthly, through June 1944 after which no new classes were begun. Women from the first six classes were sent to the Ferrying Division. After that, circumstances changed the distribution of the women graduates. The women now were sent to take on a variety of other flying jobs.
In June 1943, Cochran was named Director of Women Pilots. In August 1943, 
ALL the women pilots became known as WASP, Women Airforce Service Pilots. Jackie Cochran, now led the WASP as a whole. General Tunner named Nancy Love “Executive for WASP of the Ferrying Division”. She continued to answer to Tunner and direct the duties of the women ferrying aircraft for the Ferrying Division, ATC.
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Thank you for reading my blog and my books! You can find all my books about the WAFS and WASP on Amazon, including my Young Adult-focused biographies of Nancy Love and Betty Gillies.
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February 4, 2022
Nancy Love and the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron
On May 21, 1940, Nancy Harkness Love wrote to Lt. Col. Robert Olds — Plans Division of the Office of the Chief of the Air Corps — about the possibility of women ferrying aircraft for the U.S. Army. Two weeks later, Nancy and her husband Robert M. Love and two employees from their Inter City Aviation air service in Boston took part in a ferrying operation to deliver small aircraft to Canada.
The planes were to be shipped to France but, sadly, the deliveries to Canada coincided with the fall of Dunkirk in France and the retreat of the Allies from mainland Europe. The aircraft never made it to France.
Olds took her suggestion to Commanding General of the Army Air Forces, H.H. “Hap” Arnold, but Arnold turned it down. Another woman pilot, Jacqueline Cochran, made a similar suggestion to Arnold that same summer. He turned her idea down as well.
FERRYING COMMAND ESTABLISHEDA year later — May 29, 1941 — Olds received the order to establish the Air Corps Ferrying Command in order to to speed up the deliveries of bombers to England via the then two-month-old Lend Lease Act. He put Maj. William H. Tunner in charge of finding pilots qualified to ferry those aircraft. Pilots were in short supply, but Tunner managed by borrowing pilots from tactical units.
Nancy Harkness Love — Photo courtesy the WASP Archives, Texas Woman’s University
Pearl Harbor changed all that. All Tunner’s “borrowed” pilots returned immediately to their units.
Airplane production went into high gear building training aircraft. Army Air Forces cadet flight-training centers bloomed all over the more weather-friendly south. Someone had to ferry those trainers from the factories to those training fields. Combat airplanes also needed to be flown to the docks for shipment to the battle zones. Tunner, desperate again for pilots, went on the hunt.
Men who could meet the Ferrying Command’s high standards, and who weren’t already in the Army or Navy, were working under contract as certified flight instructors teaching future combat pilots how to fly. By early 1942 the pilot shortage was more critical than it had been in 1940.
NANCY GETS COLONEL WILLIAM TUNNER’S ATTENTIONBill Tunner, unaware of earlier proposals to use women pilots, met Nancy Love in spring 1942. He was impressed. Love had earned her private pilot license at 16, her limited commercial at 18, and her transport license at 19. She worked as a charter pilot for her husband, Bob Love, at Inter City Aviation in Boston. She also served as demonstration pilot for two experimental tricycle gear safety planes: the Bureau of Air Commerce’s Hammond Y, in 1937; and the Gwinn Aircar, 1937-38. And she had worked for the Bureau’s Air Marking project in 1935 and again in 1937. Her aviation experience was impressive
Bob , in the Reserve, was called to active duty immediately after Pearl Harbor. He headed for Washington D.C. All flying along the Atlantic coast moved inland after Pearl Harbor, so Nancy closed the flying service at East Boston Airport and joined Bob in D.C. He was a major, working for the Ferrying Command under their old friend Bob Olds.
When Olds’ health began to fail in March 1942, Hap Arnold replaced him with Col. Harold L. George and promoted him to brigadier general. That same month, Nancy went to work as a civilian setting up ferrying routes and running air operations for Maj. Robert H. Baker, at the Ferrying Command’s Baltimore, Maryland, headquarters.
Bob Love actually introduced his wife to Bill Tunner for the purpose of discussing what women pilots could do for the Ferrying Command. By then, Nancy came highly recommended by Baker and his superiors, General George, and George’s Chief of Staff, Col. C.R. Smith — who also just happened to be a personal friend of both the Loves.
NANCY LOVE LEADS WOMEN’S AUXILIARY FERRYING SQUADRONOn June 20, General George changed the name of the Ferrying Command to the Air Transport Command (ATC). Tunner was put in command of ATC’s domestic arm, the Ferrying Division. In that capacity, and with the total backing of his superiors in the ATC, Tunner made the groundbreaking decision to employ civilian women pilots to ferry military aircraft. He sent the proposal to General George who forwarded it on to General Arnold.
On June 20, 1942, Tunner also hired Nancy Love, age 28, to find and recruit women ferry pilots for him. On July 13, 1942, she reported for duty at New Castle Army Air Base, Wilmington, Delaware. Her first job was to write the training syllabus for women pilots. The original draft was in her handwriting. She also came up with the stringent requirements the women needed to meet to qualify for this new squadron — as yet unnamed.
See next week’s blog for the second half of this article.
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Thanks for reading my blog and newsletter. I hope you will check out all my books about the WAFS and WASP.
Here’s my recent biography of Nancy Love. Check it out here. You’ll find it and all my other WAFS/WASP books on Amazon.
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December 24, 2021
Christmas in Germany, American Style
On December 20, 1994, the four Rickmans — 
we were four then — celebrated our older son’s 28th birthday in a village near Berchtesgaden, Germany. The U.S. Air Force sent him to Germany for three years and the other three of us joined him for the holidays.
For dinner that night, we journeyed up the mountain to an inn ringed by high snow-covered ridges.
We stepped from the rental car into a crisp cold that carried the hint of coming snow. Bundled in our warm parkas, we made our way across the parking lot to the entryway — a solid, weathered, heavy wooden door. Inside, light and warmth welcomed us. “Guten Abend!” said the smiling maître de. Returning his smile and nodding, we repeated the phrase, ours tinged with a mix of American South and Mid-West. He led us to a booth.
A CLEAN WELL-LIGHTED PLACESeated across the room a couple in their 40s, engrossed in conversation, spoke rapid-fire German in hoarse whispers. The only other occupant, a lone older gentleman clad in lederhosen, wide suspenders, knee socks and knobbed boots, nursed the half-litre of beer on the table in front of him.
Son number two, my fellow literati, looked around, then back at me and said, “A Clean Well-Lighted Place.” I nodded in recognition.
We settled into our familiar café-sitting and drinking mode — Americans on holiday abroad, out to celebrate a birthday and soon to celebrate Christmas. What a contrast to the quiet despair of the middle-aged waiter and the old man in Papa Hemingway’s story by that familiar title. For us this warm well-lighted place offered the height of togetherness and the pleasure it brings. We reveled in the evening — good sauerbraten, good local beer, good companionship.
THREE STARS TOOK OUR BREATH AWAYAs we left the warm, clean, well-lighted place and approached the car, our footsteps crunched on the new fallen snow. In the frigid air, puffs of crystallized breath escaped our mouths. We talked softly, and then, almost as one, we looked up and the sight took our collective breaths away.
Atop one of the high ridges encircling the town shone the bright white five-pointed Star of Bethlehem. A six-pointed Star of David topped the next ridge. The Star and Crescent symbol of Islam shown from the top of a third ridge. A circle of peace in the heart of Germany on a quiet winter night — a symbol of hope.
CHRISTMAS EVE IN GAUANGELLOCHFour nights later, we were back in our son’s small apartment outside Gauangelloch near Heidelberg. He and I made our way down the hill to the German Protestant Church for the 11 p.m. Christmas Eve Candlelight Service — a familiar ritual in our Methodist family.
The small church was packed, everyone bundled in warm coats, jackets and mufflers. We found standing room at the back. Good thing the other two stayed back in the apartment drinking brandy.
STILLE NACHT IN PERFECT HARMONYWe understood only three words spoken or sung that night — Mary, Joseph and Bethlehem — it was enough. The two of us — church choir stalwarts — sang Silent Night, quietly, in English under our breath. He took the baritone harmony. I, the alto. We gloried in the rich sound of the German voices raised in song around us.
On the way back up the hill at midnight, church bells peeled and voices called out greetings that echoed in the frosty darkness. Again, crystallized puffs of our own breath led the way as we walked up the hill toward the apartment.
That night we learned that our younger son had met a special girl. Back in Atlanta, she awaited his return from Christmas with his family in Germany. That was our last Christmas as four because she joined our family gathering the following Christmas. Several years later, his brother added his lady to the mix.
WE ARE BLESSED!Blessed with four grandchildren, we grew to ten, and remained so through Christmas of 2018. Now grampa is gone and we are nine. Still, we are blessed.
Now, as I remember these many years later the three lighted symbols atop those ridges in Germany, I want to wish you all a blessed holiday — according to your personal beliefs — and a healthy and prosperous New Year.
And thank you for reading my blog AND my books!
Here’s a link to all of my books on Amazon: Click here.
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November 6, 2021
“It’s an American Girl Doll!”
Three years ago, when my granddaughter Emaline turned 7, her heart’s desire was an American Girl doll. Doting gramma that I am, I went with Emy and her mother to the AG store in Denver where Emy picked out “her” doll, Mary Ellen.
No, I’m not abandoning my quest to tell the story of the WAFS and WASP of World War II, as you’ll discover. Just keep reading, please.
I raised two sons—Emy’s father Jim and her Uncle Charlie. I knew nothing about American Girl dolls until my good friend Judy Dubuc — who also raised two sons — told me about Molly, the 1944 American Girl doll who represented the World War II era.
Emy and Molly, September 2021In Molly, My Friend Judy Saw Herself Circa 1944“She looks just like I did back then,” Judy told me when she introduced me to Molly. “I had long brown braids just like hers,” she said.
Both Judy and I were in grade school during WWII. And, no, American Girl dolls weren’t around then. I was more interested in horses than dolls, but I did have a beautiful figure-skating doll — similar to the AG dolls of the future, but not as big. She came complete with tiny ice skates. She was inspired by Sonja Henie, the athletic and beautiful Norwegian Olympic figure-skating champion and later movie star. I loved that doll! She had meaning.
Molly came with a book about what she and her family did during WWII. Molly’s father has gone off to the war. He’s fighting somewhere over in France. Judy tells me that her father, too, was in service during WWII, and he was sent overseas.
Molly’s Aunt, a WASP, Flew for the Ferry CommandTurns out Molly’s aunt also is in the service. She’s a WASP [Women Airforce Service Pilots]. She ferried aircraft for the Army Air Forces. In keeping with the story, AG created a WASP outfit for Molly, complete with khaki pants, an Eisenhower battle jacket, and a leather flight helmet like the one the WASP wore when they flew the open cockpit Primary trainers.
Years later, as an adult, Judy found in Molly a reminder of her young self. Since she had no daughters, she bought the doll for herself.
Knowing my interest in the WASP, Judy dressed Molly up in her flying togs for me to see. Good timing! My older granddaughter, Katie, was soon to turn 7. Now I knew what to get for her birthday. Immediately, I ordered Molly, PLUS the WASP outfit — which was extra.
Gramma Took Molly to Women In Aviation, InternationalTo let you in on a secret, before I gave Molly to Katie, I took Molly to the Women in Aviation Conference where I was selling my latest WASP books. I stood Molly up on the table beside the books. Of course, she was dressed in her full WASP regalia. She was the hit of the conference. I sold all my books!!!
Fast forward 12 years. Katie is now 18. I’ve given Emy the AG book about Molly and her WASP aunt. PLUS, she’s been learning more about the WASP in real time. I took her to the Women in Aviation, International conference in 2019. There, she met two real live WASP.
Last spring, Emy spotted a picture of Molly dressed in her WASP outfit. Now she wants Molly, too — to be a sister to Mary Ellen. Sadly, I have to tell her that AG no longer makes the Molly doll. But, Emy’s 12-year-old brother, Daniel, overhears our conversation. Using his burgeoning computer skills, he goes online and makes a discovery.
“Gramma, They’ve Reissued Molly!”“Gramma,” he says when he gets me alone. “They’ve reissued Molly.” Wide-eyed, I watch as he calls up the American Girl website on the screen.
There she is! As a 2021 anniversary reissue, for a limited time, AG is bringing back some of its favorite dolls from the past!!! No, the WASP outfit is not part of the reissue, but there’s darling Molly dressed in her 1944 school outfit.
Immediately, I place the order and a few days later, the shipping box with Molly arrives. I hid it in the closet so Emy wouldn’t see it, because she would immediately recognize the box.
And she did!!! —when we presented it to her on her birthday. “I know what it is,” she said, gleefully. “An American Girl doll.”
But She Didn’t Know It Was Molly!
She didn’t know it was Molly until she opened the box!!! Her excitement and the look on her face was a reward for us all.
An added perk, last summer Katie — now a college freshman — and her mom managed to unearth Molly’s WASP outfit that was long ago packed away in the attic. Now we had a WASP outfit for Emy’s Molly. It has a little age on it. After all, it was well used by 7-year-old Katie. Nevertheless, there was the battle jacket, the khaki pants and the flight helmet!
Emy’s got it all!
Emy and Molly the WASP!Read Sarah’s WASP BooksThe post “It’s an American Girl Doll!” appeared first on Sarah Byrn Rickman.
October 10, 2021
‘The Originals’ Book Program in North Carolina on the Horizon?
Last Saturday, I finally got to meet Mike McCarthy, the gentleman who very nicely invited me to come to North Carolina in mid-March 2020 to talk about my book The Originals — the women pilots who flew for the U.S.A. in World War II — at the Veterans History Museum of the Carolinas.
That trip never happened, and we all know why. Thank you Covid 19!
Mike is a volunteer with the Veterans History Museum,
located in Brevard, North Carolina. He first tried to book me for November 11, 2019, because he had put together a Veterans Day program featuring military women from the various services. He very much wanted to add the WASP/WAFS and my book, The Originals, to that event.
Sarah and Mike, Garden of the Gods
Covid Interfered Big TimeWhen I couldn’t do that one because of a scheduling conflict, he invited me and we planned the March appearance instead.— But then Covid happened!!!
Last month, I heard from Mike again. He and his wife, Janis Allen, were planning to come to Colorado Springs for a vacation the first weekend in October. It included a visit to the Garden of the Gods, a trip up Pikes Peak on the Cog Railway, and a timely glimpse of Colorado’s exquisite fall colors. And they asked if they might take me to lunch while they were here.
“We would like to meet you and interview you about your book, The Originals: The Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron of World War II, Mike wrote. “Janis publishes a newsletter for our museum, and we would feature the interview there. Please let me know if this would be agreeable to you.
It most certainly was! And what a delightful conversation we had!
Janis Allen
Janis is a fellow author. Her latest book is “We Shall Come Home Victorious” — Stories of WWII Veterans. Several of those featured in her book are family members. All have a North Carolina connection. Janis gave me a signed copy. All proceeds from the book go to help support the Museum.
I, in turn, gave Janis and Mike a copy of my newest book: Teresa James WAFS Pilot: Gear Up/ Gear Down — a P-47 to Newark.
Mike is a business consultant, and also an author, and he and Janis live in Brevard. “Helping the Museum with projects is my way of honoring my father, John McCarthy, who performed convoy duty with the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II. The Veterans History Museum provides ways to honor and remember our veterans,” says Mike about his work there.
Carolina Veterans History Museum Honors MikeIn turn, this what the museum said about him:
“For offering creative ideas and countless hours of dedication in support of our mission; For recruiting a business manager to join our board of directors; For traveling outside our county to spread the word about the Veterans History Museum; For embracing and honoring Korean War veterans in The Forgotten War Remembered; For promoting the museum far and wide through special events such as the book, The Rifle; and For working quietly and behind the scenes in pursuit of these endeavors.”
Neither Mike nor I have given up hope of me eventually doing a presentation for the Museum. With the rise of Virtual presentation technology during the Covid confinement we’ve all experienced, I have been doing more and more book and WASP presentations via Zoom. Having me do a program for the museum that way is looking more and more promising and that’s where we stand now. Not that I wouldn’t like to travel back to the Brevard/Asheville area of North Carolina. My Air Force son was once stationed with the Weather Command in Asheville and I enjoyed several visits to that lovely area.
We shall see. …
[If you’re interested in having me do a virtual presentation on the U.S. women pilots of WWII, please contact me!
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