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By RAELYNN RICARTE
News staff
writer
Elizabeth Putnam is a World War II veteran
who has decided to join the American Legion as a matter of
principle.
Putnam was denied entry into the fraternal
organization after the war because she was a woman. The
suggestion by Legion officials that she join the Auxiliary
instead, an arm of the Legion reserved for civilians with
military connections, never set well with her.
At the age of 93, Putnam has decided that it
is time to remedy the situation; something made possible by a
change in the Legion rules many years ago.
“I never wanted to be part of the Auxiliary;
I am a veteran and I have been very emphatic about that,” said
Putnam.
American Legion Post 22 of Hood River, after
learning of Putnam’s intent, made plans to grant her a
membership. The honor will be bestowed by National Guard
Sergeant First Class Gary Norris, the new Legion commander, as
part of the local Veterans Day ceremony.
The annual observance will take place this
year at Anderson’s Tribute Center, 1401 Belmont Ave., due to
renovations still underway at the Hood River Armory. The service
to commemorate those who have served in the armed forces begins
at 11 a.m. Nov. 11. (The complete schedule will be printed in
Saturday’s edition.)
In 1942 Putnam, whose maiden name was Henley,
became one of the nation’s first female soldiers. She joined
150,000 other members of the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps in
taking roles that had previously been held by men. Their
contributions freed up combat troops for action on two war
fronts.
“I had two brothers and one loved to fly but
his wife didn’t want him to enlist; so I decided that if he
couldn’t, I would,” said Putnam, who lived in California at the
time.
She left college, where she had been working
on teaching credentials in health and physical fitness, to enter
Officer Candidate School at Fort Des Moines in Iowa.
Three months later, Putnam emerged from that
training as a second lieutenant and her Army career began.
Her favorite memory of that era is her
first-ever flight in a P38 airplane at a base in Salinas, Calif.
She “piggybacked” in the single-seat aircraft
as the pilot performed aerial acrobatics in an attempt, she
suspected, to gain her affection.
Once back on the ground, Putnam was greeted
by an unhappy general for not adhering to the one-person policy
for the plane.
“Everyone was impressed with my demeanor
after all that because I wasn’t scared and trembling — I just
commented that my hair was a mess,” said Putnam.
She became a platoon leader at a base in
Louisiana and taught women under her command that, “There is the
right way, the wrong way and the Army way” to get things done.
No WAAC members were allowed to carry a
weapon, but Putnam said they were taught the same military
protocol as combat soldiers. For example, beds had to be made
tight enough to bounce a quarter on, or their much-coveted
weekend liberty was denied.
“I had always been domestically impaired so I
argued that I couldn’t take over the mess officer duties.
Otherwise, I did what I was told,” said Putnam.
She worked as a recruiter and provided
instruction in basic skills and physical reconditioning.
Life on a military base, said Putnam, wasn’t
without perks; she met performer Bob Hope and many other
celebrities while assisting with United Service Organization
activities.
About six months after the war ended in 1945,
Putnam, then a first lieutenant, found herself back in the
civilian world.
“I tried and tried to get overseas and
finally I did get orders for the South Pacific but the war was
over before I could go,” she said.
Putnam celebrated the end of the war by
traveling with Army buddy Marge Lyon, also a WAAC lieutenant, to
Florida, one of the two states they had not entered or flown
over during their military service.
She then headed back to California and, after
obtaining her teaching certification from San Jose State
College, landed a job as physical education instructor for
elementary students.
Putnam completed a master’s degree at the
University of California, Los Angeles, and was working on her
doctorate when she met Palmer Putnam, whose family owned a
publishing company.
“Instead of getting published, I married the
publisher,” she said.
The couple was married from 1961 until
Palmer’s death in 1984. They had no children but Elizabeth
enjoyed spending time with her niece, Jean Harmon, of Hood
River.
Three years ago, Harmon convinced her to move
into Down Manor, although Putnam admits the rain and snows of
the Northwest are something that she is unlikely to ever enjoy.
“After last winter, I never want to see snow
again,” she said.
Putnam continues to live out her life motto,
“I try” in her senior years. She has a new love interest and
will soon be able to take advantage of membership opportunities
in the American Legion.
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