Helen Marie (Donnelly) Soden enlisted in the Women’s Army Corps on June 20, 1944, in Newark, New Jersey, and served until April 9, 1946. She was honorably discharged at Fort Dix, NJ.
After completing basic training at Fort Oglethorpe in Georgia, she was assigned as a clerk with the Headquarters of the 2nd Army Air Force in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The 2nd Army Air Force served as a training ground for B-29s.
She met her future husband Frank Soden at a USO dance in Colorado Springs when Frank returned from Italy, serving as a soldier with the 10th Mountain Division as a heavy machine gunner. He was stationed in August 1945 at Fort Carson, Colorado, upon his return from Italy. They discovered they were both from the same area of New Jersey, and married on March 14, 1946 in Newark, New Jersey, immediately following Frank’s separation from the Army and while Helen was on furlough pending her separation from the WACs. Following their wedding, they returned to Colorado Springs and attended Blair Business College as beneficiaries of the Veterans GI Bill.
This remembrance provided by her son, Glenn Soden.
Photos of Helen Donnelly Soden during World War II:
(Click thumbnails to view full photo in slideshow)
NOTE: Photos on this page are “All Rights Reserved” and may not be copied or used without permission.
