The Bishop Hill Heritage Association is hosting a free presentation called The Journey to Mollie’s War: WACS and WWII by Cyndee Schaffer at 2 p.m. in the Dairy Building on Saturday, October 12. Members of the Women’s Army Corps (WACs) were the first women other than nurses to serve overseas in World War II. Cyndee Schaffer’s mother, Mollie Weinstein Schaffer, was one of them. Drawing upon excerpts from Mollie’s letters written home during the war, mother and daughter published the book, Mollie’s War, which this presentation is based upon. This program details Mollie’s experiences from basic training in Florida in October 1943 to the dramatic moment when the Statue of Liberty came into view upon her return in November 1945. It traces the footsteps of the women who served in Europe, following Mollie and her fellow WACs who were stationed in London, England before D-Day and during the post D-Day German buzz bomb attacks. The WACs were transferred to Normandy, and then to Paris after its liberation by the Allies. After VE Day (Victory in Europe), they served in Versailles. Finally, they traveled to Frankfurt, Germany, as part of the Army of Occupation and witnessed firsthand the devastation of that country before returning to the United States. Cyndee’s presentation will invite contemplation of the vital and varied roles that women have fulfilled in the American military.
Due to the sponsorships of the BHHA and the Illinois Humanities Council Road Scholar Speakers Bureau, this program is free and open to the public. The Dairy Building is located at 410 North Erickson Street, Bishop Hill IL. For more details about this program, please call 309 927-3899 or email bhha@mymctc.net.
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