This is the story of two sisters from Mingo who couldn’t bear to spend World War II on the home front and decided to join up. Much of this story comes from Gladys Poorbaugh Meeker’s memoirs, compiled by her younger sister, Doris Byal.

Gladys Poorbaugh and her older sister, Jeanne, grew up in Mingo. Jeanne was born in 1920, and Gladys was born three years later. During the early stages of World War II, the girls saw Women’s Army Corps (WAC) training at Fort Des Moines, and in the words of Gladys, “we were not particularly impressed.” Still, the thought was there that they should be doing something for their country.

One day, Gladys saw two Navy WAVES, and she thought, “They look really smart.” She decided that was what she wanted to do and joined shortly after her 20th birthday in January 1944. Jeanne joined her in the WAVES the following December. Boot camp for the WAVES was at Hunter College in New York City.