West Newsmagazine 3-21-18

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March 21, 2018
WEST NEWSMAGAZINE
Quilts of Valor honors veteran thought to be oldest living WAC
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By ELLEN LAMPE
Ask 104-year-old local resident Elaine
Ooley her thoughts on life and she’ll tell
you, “Just like the wind, it goes by fast.”
Though it may go by fast, Elaine’s
life has been full – and full of memories,
including special recognition as a hero.
Elaine was born Jan. 27, 1914, on a
snowy day in Two Harbors, Minnesota. Her
father’s job as a railroad worker caused the
family to move frequently but they eventually
settled in Mattoon, Illinois.
In the first years of her life, the United
States was rocked by the start of World
War I and the Flu Pandemic of 1918. Her
parents and sister grew ill from the flu; her
best friend died. Even the family doctor
died. But 4-year-old Elaine managed to
remain healthy and learned how to prepare
meals for her sick family.
“That flu ... It was the talk of the town,”
Elaine said. It was one of her earliest memories,
but she has so many more.
“I remember the flapper stage. Women
started cutting their hair and wearing short
dresses. Of course, I wanted to be one too,”
Elaine said. “I was only about 12, but I still
wanted to learn to dance and do all that good
stuff. Well, my mother didn’t go for that one.”
She graduated high school in 1932, at
the height of the Great Depression. With no
money for college, Elaine found employment
sewing tongues onto the vamps of
shoes for 10 cents a vamp.
“Sometimes I could make a dollar, a
couple bucks ... I got pretty fast at it,”
Elaine said.
Eventually, Elaine was able to attend one
year of college before returning home to
take care of her ailing parents. Then, came
Dec. 7, 1941.
Elaine’s boyfriend at the time, an officer
in the military who later would become
her husband, survived the Pearl Harbor
attack. Elaine said everyone stepped up to
do something.
In November 1942, she followed her
sister into the Women’s Army Corps. She
joined as a stenographer, then went on to
serve as a personnel administrator specialist
and aircraft dispatcher at Kirtland Air
Force Base in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
She served until the end of the war.
Elaine, a widow who never had children,
is a self-described “people person”
who devoted her life to volunteering and
making relationships in the community.
“I like to be around people and I like
being active. I’ve never really stopped,”
Elaine Ooley
she said. “I’ve belonged to the American
Legion for around 40 years and I’ve been
very active at the St. Louis Veterans Home.
I’d say that probably the most important
thing I’ve done is volunteer.”
She never considered herself a hero –
that is, until January, when she was presented
with a once-in-a-lifetime gift.
“It is with great pride and admiration
that we present this quilt to you … every
stitch, every seam, each piece cut and sewn
together – all made with love and gratitude
for what you have done,” a letter to Elaine
from Piecemakers Heritage Quilters read.
Linda Kuennen, of Piecemakers Heritage
Quilters, a branch of the national Quilts of
Valor Foundation, caught wind of Elaine’s
story through a mutual friend. “I thought,
‘Wow, she has got to be the oldest living
WAC. We have to do something special for
her and her service. What an honor it is to
still have her around.’”
Kuennen shared Elaine’s story with her
fellow quilters, who decided Elaine would
be the recipient of their next Quilt of Valor.
“[Linda] called me and said, ‘We are
going to present you with a quilt. A quilt for
heroes.’ I was just overwhelmed and humbled,”
Elaine said. “I knew about the Quilts
of Valor but I’ve never been approached.
It’s quite an organization and the quilt is
gorgeous. It’s a museum-type quilt.”
Quilts of Valor are presented as a symbol
of comfort and peace to select veterans
across the country who have been touched
by the effects of war. They include personalized
details down to each stitch, with a
beautiful patch detailing the recipient’s
information and history.
Receiving the quilt has helped Elaine
reconnect with people from the past.
“I had three men come to the door and
they said, ‘Elaine, do you remember us?’
They were longtime friends of mine as a
young kid.”
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