WASP Irene McConihay Leahy, 44-W-6

WASP Irene McConihay Leahy of Pelican Bay,  Daytona Beach, Florida passed away in the early morning hours of Monday, March 29, 2010.

This notification marks the passing of another beautiful WASP, one  whom I was never privileged to meet, but whose life and service to our country was a priceless gift to every American.  For her gift, we are all grateful.

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Irene McConihay Leahy was born on March 2, 1918 in Charleston, West Virginia to John and Irene McConihay. She learned to fly in a seaplane on the Kanawha River.  Because the school was next to a bridge, Irene learned to fly under the bridge, both for landings and take offs.  After earning her private pilot's license, she kept flying and applied for the WASP' flying training program.  

She received notification that she must have a personal interview with an official of the WASP organization before she could be accepted into the program.    After driving all night for an 8am appointment, Irene and 2 other female pilots were interviewed at Lockbourne AFB in Ohio.  (She reported 'drinking carrot juice' all night, so that they would all pass the eye test.)  After completing all the other prerequisites for admission, they were all  accepted into the training program.

Once she was notified that she had been accepted, Irene paid her way to Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas, where she raised her right hand, took the military oath and, along with 135 other young women pilots, became a trainee in WASP class 44-W-6.  Over the next seven months,   she trained in  PT-17's, BT-13's, and the AT-6 North American "Texan", at the same time taking ground school courses,  which included learning to 'fly' the Link trainer.    On August 4, 1944,  she and 71 other young women pilots  graduated and received their silver WASP wings.

Irene's  Army Air Force orders sent her to Shaw AFB, Sumter, South Carolina to the 2142nd AFBU (Air Force Base Unit).  Shaw AFB was a basic (BT-13) modification center, where the WASP flew as engineering test pilots, ferry pilots and as instrument instructors.

After the WASP were disbanded in December of 1944, Irene never flew as a pilot again.  She began a career in secretarial and administrative work that she continued until her retirement.

In 1947 she met and married David Leahy, the love of her life.   She dedicated 30 years as an Executive Secretary with the United Association of Journeymen and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and Canada, in Washington D.C.

She and her husband moved to the Daytona Beach area from their home in Silver Springs, MD, in 1985, where, as members of the Pelican Bay Country Club,  Irene enjoyed playing bridge and was an avid golfer, playing in many golf tournaments in the area.

On April 1, 2010, a  memorial service was held at the Daytona Chapel of the Lohman Funeral Home, followed by interment at Daytona Memorial Park.

Irene leaves behind her only survivor--her devoted husband of 63 years, David E. Leahy.
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To Irene's husband, David:  'Our prayers for God's comfort.'

God bless you all,

Respectfully submitted by nancy parrish
(Parts of this post are taken from a short online notice of Irene's death, "On Final Approach" by WASP Byrd Howell Granger,  and "Out of the Blue and Into History" by WASP Betty Turner.)

WASP Dorothy Dodd Eppstein, 44-W-1

Our journey to meet Dorothy Eppstein began in 1999, when  we sent her a short letter requesting her permission to come to her home and digitally record her history for our project, 'Wings Across America'.  She replied 'whole heartedly' that she believed it was important to educate young people about the overlooked history of the WASP.   So, even though she had been sick, she agreed to an interview at her home in Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Our first interview in Kalamazoo was in July, 2001 with Dorothy's long time best friend, WASP Doris Nathan.  They had been in the same class, stationed at the same base, and had both moved to Kalamazoo, Michigan after the WASP were disbanded.  They truly were life-long friends.   When we arrived at Doris's home, she told us Dorothy had been hospitalized, but she still wanted to talk to us.   

I called Dorothy and she insisted we come to her hospital room the next day.  She had just had surgery, so  I know she was not  completely comfortable, but we went.  The first thing I did was to promise Dorothy not to videotape her-- only to record the audio, which I did.  I then asked to photograph her, promising I would NOT show the sheets or the hospital bed, which I did, as you can see from the wonderful picture.  Then  I stood on one side of her bed, mom stood on the other.

Rather than gently guiding Dorothy through her life, as mom usually does in her interviews, she allowed Dorothy to 'just talk'.  Dorothy talked about what was on her heart, what was important to her, and why.  What a blessing for us both.    What an incredible lady!

Dorothy survived that hospital stay and a few more.  Over the last few months, she was able to travel with her family to Washington, DC to receive the Congressional Gold Medal.  She was also at the opening of our WASP Fly Girls Exhibit at the Kalamazoo Air Zoo just a few weeks ago-- May 28th.




I've posted the video from the Kalamazoo News and their story on her, which really captures the determined optimistic spirit of this unusually gifted WASP.  What a legacy she leaves. I am so proud to have met her!

Our thoughts and prayers go out to her family.  

Respectfully submitted by Nancy Parrish

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The following,  reposted from the Kalamazoo online news.  I post it here because newspapers tend to take down articles after some time has passed.  All of the wonderful information on the WASP needs to be online permanently.  Because of Dorothy and all these incredible WASP, Wings Across America is determined to make sure that happens.

WASP Dorothy Dodd (Eppstein) and WASP Doris Burmester Nathan

KALAMAZOO — Throughout her life, Dorothy Eppstein fostered an independence and sense of adventure that led her to work in research labs of The Upjohn Co., build a Frank Lloyd Wright house and fly U.S. military aircraft in World War II as a member of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASP.

Eppstein, 92, died Monday from complications after falling Friday in the parking structure of her Kalamazoo apartment building, said Maggie Eppstein, a daughter.

Dorothy Eppstein was one of the three women who were still living in the Kalamazoo area who were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by the Congress of the United States* in March for their service during the war.

She was joined by Doris Nathan and Suzanne D. Parish, one of the founders of the Kalamazoo Air Zoo. Parish died May 14.

After receiving the medal, the highest civilian award accorded by Congress, Maggie Eppstein said her mother wore her WASP uniform around town for a week — to the beauty parlor, the theater and the bridge club.

“She was so excited,” Maggie Eppstein said. “It meant a whole lot.”

In WASP,  Eppstein served as a ferry and a test pilot and was one of 1,074* female pilots to complete the training. More than 25,000 volunteers applied. About 300 pilots are still alive.

Eppstein was born on March 1, 1918 in Lansing, and survived the Spanish flu pandemic when she was six moths old. After earning a chemistry degree from Michigan State University, she became a research secretary at The Upjohn Co. in Kalamazoo, before volunteering for WASP in 1943.

Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP): Dorothy Dodd Eppstein

But Maggie Eppstein said her mother would say her time with WASP was less important than the 20 years she worked as a substance-abuse counselor at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Battle Creek.

After retiring from the VA, she wrote a book on her counseling philosophy called “Is Living Killing You?”

Daughter Betsy Eppstein said she spent most of Tuesday looking through some 20 photo albums her mother compiled over the years.

“She reinvented herself so many times in so many disconnected things,” Betsy Eppstein said.

Dorothy Eppstein was a teacher, did community theater work, wrote plays, earned degrees in counseling, psychology, and social work, and, late in her life, played in Texas Hold ‘em poker tournaments.

“She was always curious about things,” Betsy Eppstein said. “She believed she could do anything she wanted to do.”

In the 1950s, Dorothy and her husband, Sam, built a Frank Lloyd Wright house near Galesburg, and told the famous architect that the kitchen needed to be bigger.

The couple built the house themselves, from pouring the blocks of concrete to finishing the woodwork.

Eppstein was politically active during the anti-war and civil rights movements in the 1960s, and wrote many letters to the editor on her views. She attended many political rallies and saw Martin Luther King Jr. deliver his “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C.

“She lived a full life and stayed independent,” Maggie Eppstein said. “She had an independent spirit that would never be kept down, long before it was customary in women.”

In addition to her daughters Betsy and Maggie, Dorothy Eppstein is survived by daughters Laurel Eppstein and Debby Eppstein, son Jonathan Eppstein, 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

A memorial service will be held at 7 p.m. Friday at the Peoples’ Church, Unitarian Universalist, 1758 N. 10th St., where Eppstein was a member.

Contact Fritz Klug at fklug@kalamazoogazette.com or 269-388-8553. 

*edited for accuracy

WASP Lela Louder Harding, 43-W-7

WASP Lela Louder Harding passed away on May 4, 2010, simply and quietly, after loosing a long battle with cancer.  There was no official obituary.  However we will remember Lela for the determined lady she was.  Lela Harding was a WASP, and, once a WASP, always a WASP. 


On March 10, 2010, even though she was very, very sick,  Lela  made the trip from her home in Oklahoma, City to Washington, DC and was able to attend the WASP Congressional Gold Medal Ceremony with her family.  They took her to the US Capitol in a limo.

Lela's  friend, WASP Betty Riddle, hadn't heard from her and tried to call.  When she discovered the phone had been disconnected, she knew something was wrong. 

I had talked with Lela on several occasions, trying to set up an interview so we could  digitally record her history.  Circumstances always seemed to prevent really getting to know this special WASP, and now, I am filling in the blank pages with words from books.  Thankfully, Lela wrote a few paragraphs in WASP Betty Turner's "Out of the Blue and Into History," and was featured in Mary Ann Verges'  "On Silver Wings." 

Respectfully, I submit the following:

Lela Louder was born on July 26, 1920 in Cisco, Texas to a West Texas cattleman and his wife.  While she was attending West Texas State College in Canyon, she enrolled in the Civilian Pilot Training program and, over her mother's objections, "sweet-talked her daddy" into paying for the advanced training.

Lela graduated from college in May of 1941, got a job as a music teacher near her home and, using her salary, bought part interest in an airplane.   Not long afterward, she applied for a position with the United States Navy, and was assigned to the Naval Air Station at Corpus Christi,  teaching Naval cadets instrument flying in the Link trainer.   While at Corpus, Lela heard about the WASP training program and, after her two roommates were accepted, she finally submitted an application and was accepted for the training program.  She arrived at Avenger Field as a member of class 43-7 and graduated on November 13, 1943.

Lela was assigned to Williams Army Air Base, where she flew as an engineering test pilot, checking out repaired aircraft.  Eventually, she was transferred to the Ferry Command at Love Field, and ferried At-6's and Cubs, and was later transferred to Lubbock, where she flew AT-10's.

After the WASP were deactivated on Dec. 20, 1944, Lela flew surplus PT-19's from Vernon, Texas to Wickenburg, Arizona and eventually was hired by American Airlines as a stewardess.

In 1946, she married Jack Harding.    Preceded in death by her husband, Jack and son, John, Lela is survived by son Ben, daughter Jane, two stepdaughters and many grandchildren.

For more on WASP Lela Harding, read "On Silver Wings" by Marianne Verges.

WASP Elizabeth Stavrum Lux, 43-W-8

I never had the honor of meeting WASP Elizabeth Lux, however I was able to correspond with her by email over the last few years.   I was saddened, as I know many of you WASP will be, when notified that she had passed away on June 3.

I respectfully offer the following, edited from WASP Betty Turner's "Out of the Blue and Into History"

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Elizabeth Stavrum Lux was born in Superior, Wisconsin on May 24, 1922. After moving to Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, eventually the depression caused the family to move to Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where she graduated, with honors, from a local high school.

Elizabeth attended Oshkosh State Teachers College and then the University of Madison. Because she had promised her parents she would graduate from college, she waited until after graduation to enter WASP training. , on July 5, 1943 as a member of class 43-W-8. After graduation, Elizabeth was assigned to the Training Command as an engineering test pilot at Napier Field, Dothan, Alabama.

After the WASP were disbanded, in March of 1945 Elizabeth returned to Napier where she worked as a Link instructor until Napier was deactivated. In February of 1946, she married Captain Frank O. Lux and became an Air Force wife. The young couple went from El Paso, Texas to Camp Lee, Virginia to Salt Lake City, Utah. When Frank was assigned to Korea, Elizabeth eventually followed, moving to Japan in November, 1947.

In June, 1948, first daughter, Frances, was born, followed by 2 more daughters and 2 sons.

After loosing her husband in 1969, Elizabeth moved to Annapolis, MD and joined the Fort Meade Flying Club. She learned to sail, golf and enrolled in a program at the University of Maryland for a degree in interior design, continuing her education with courses in art and photography.

She spent the later years of her life near her children in San Diego, where she continued courses in education and joined the public health club. She died peacefully in her sleep at home in Carlsbad, California, on June 3, 2010. Elizabeth is survived by daughters Frances, Christine, and Elizabeth, and sons Stephen and Michael.

A Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, June 19, at 2:30 p.m. at Pilgrim's Progress United Church of Christ (Congregationalist), located at 2020 Chestnut Avenue, in Carlsbad, CA 92008, Tel. (760)729-6311.

WASP Frankie Yearwood, 44-W-10

Frankie Yearwood was a precious lady, a WASP that we were proud to call a 'friend,' although I don't really think Frankie ever met a stranger.  She embraced people as friends, and there were many, many friends.  She passed away on Sunday, May 30, 2010, after loosing her final battle to leukemia.

Frankie was strong, determined, kind, gentle and patriotic.  Her faith was her compass, guiding her in everything she did.  Because of that, Sunday was always a very special day for her.  Sunday was not a day to do business.  It was a day to reflect on God's blessings and to thank and honor Him. 

For our Wings Across America project, the only day we had to interview Frankie was a Sunday, August 13, 2000. We almost didn't get that opportunity.  I spent quite a bit of time getting to know her over the phone.   She prayed about it and finally agreed.  She felt that what she had to say might be important someday.  I believe today is that day.  

Our Wings Across America interviews always end with questions about legacy and inspiration.   Technology is finally catching up with the precious content that Frankie so kindly shared.  Frankie had worked on her answer, and I believe it is appropriate to share it now. May it bless you as it has us.

It is amazing to note that her birthday,  July 10, 1921, was a Sunday, and she finally flew home on  Sunday, May 30, 2010.  Our prayers for her family, her many friends and our prayer of thanksgiving for all those whose lives she touched.

Respectfully submitted by Nancy Parrish
(If you have a problem with the video, you can view it on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVMtCs-H0Lg

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Reposted from The Commerical Appeal--Memphis, TN

Memphian Frankie Yearwood was WWII WASP

by Amy Barnette

Frankie Inez Yearwood was, quite literally, the last WASP on record.

A member of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, an elite group of the first American women to fly in the military, Ms. Yearwood was among the program's 1,074 graduates and a part of its last class. Because her name fell at the bottom of the list alphabetically, she was the last on the roster.

Frankie Yearwood was a true WWII hero from Memphis. In March, along with about 300 other women who flew in the service, Yearwood was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal

Ms. Yearwood, who attained the rank of captain, was honored in March along with about 300 other women who flew in the service. The CONGRESS of the UNITED STATES* awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to each of the remaining WASPs, who were integral in the training of combat pilots during World War II.

She died of leukemia Sunday, fittingly on Memorial Day weekend, at her home in East Memphis. She would have been 89 on July 10.

Although she was born and raised in Oklahoma, Ms. Yearwood considered herself a Memphian. After high school, she moved to Memphis and found a job building airplanes at Fisher Aircraft. From there she enrolled in a West Memphis flight school, which led to her military career.

The WASP program, which ran from 1942 to 1944, received applications from more than 25,000 women, but only 1,830 were selected. Female pilots were not in active combat during the war but were crucial to training and transportation, flying long swaths of fabric behind their planes for target practice and moving aircraft from base to base.

Her brother, Alfred Yearwood II, recalls that her short stature, at around 5-feet tall, nearly kept her from her goal.

"Frankie was a half-inch shorter than the minimum height requirement for the WASP program, but after a visit to a chiropractor, she was admitted," he said.

After the war, Ms. Yearwood returned to Memphis, where she opened a camera and photo shop, Photos by Frankie. An avid photographer, she documented special events, including weddings and reunions, until retiring around 1980.

Niece Cathy Whaley also remembers her aunt's fondness for golfing.

"She loved to play golf," Whaley said. "She and I played together, and she played in a league at Galloway."

In addition to remaining active in the WASP organization, helping with reunions and travel plans, Ms. Yearwood was very involved with her church, Getwell Church of Christ, and her large extended family. "She took care of her mother in West Memphis," Whaley said, "and then her sister."

WASP Frankie Yearwood
Wings Across America interview, 2000

Frankie was the third of five siblings, and when her sister Mary was widowed, brother Alfred said, Frankie became her constant companion. The sisters lived together for decades until Mary's death earlier this year.

An 11 a.m. visitation Thursday, June 3 will be at Roller Family Funeral Home with a 1 p.m. service. Burial will be private Roller Family Funeral Home (901)371-9500.

Ms. Yearwood was proud that she could still fit into her military uniform, which the family said she will be buried in, with full military honors.

She is survived by her brother and nine nieces and nephews.

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*article edited for accuracy

WASP Mary Ann Baldner Gordon, 44-W-9

"My father was a WWI pilot and flew with the AEF in France.  When WWII was declared, he was transferred from the National Guard to the Air Force and sent to Scott Field, as squadron commander.  This probably explains why I thought I could fly."
 WASP  Mary Ann  Gordon

Mary Ann Baldner Gordon, Class 44-9, of Satellite Beach, Florida, passed away on May 27, 2010.


Mary Ann was born in Xenia, Ohio, the oldest of three children.  Her father, a former military pilot who had served with the American Expeditionary Forces in France during WWI, returned to the family automobile business (Baldner Motor Company) in Zenia, so Mary Ann grew up and attended all twelve years of school there.  

In early 1941, her father was called up for active duty again,  and his family accompanied him to his new assignment as  Commander of Company L -- 147th Infantry at Camp Shelby, MS.  There Mary Ann worked in the drug store to pay for college in Oxford, Miss, where she was studying to become a fashion designer.  However, she dropped out to take care of her ailing mother.  Soon after Pearl Harbor,  her father was transferred to the United States Air Force and the family followed him to Scott Army Air Force Base,  Illinois.

It was while her dad, now an Air Force pilot,  was the Squadron Commander at Scott Air Force Base,  that Mary Ann decided she wanted to learn to fly.  She got a job as a clerk-typist at Scott AFB and took flying lessons at a small civilian field nearby.

After learning about the newly created program to teach qualified women pilots to fly military aircraft,  as soon as she was qualified, Mary Ann applied for the program.    She went by train to Chicago for her personal interview.  After she fulfilled all the other requirements, including the physical  (the doctor told her to gain a little more weight), she  was accepted into the program.  She then took the train to Sweetwater, Texas  and entered training as a member of Class 44-9 on April 13, 1944. 

After graduating and becoming a WASP, Mary Ann and a classmate were stationed at Freeman Field, Seymour, Indiana as engineering test pilots.    She continued in that job until the WASP were disbanded.   As Mary Ann recalled, ‘We were sorry to have it end.  When I got orders to be disbanded, I was devastated!’  Nevertheless, on December 20th,  she had hung up her Army parachute for the last time,  was flown to Scott Air Force Base, and her father met her at the flight line.

When her father got orders to be stationed in the Philippines, Mary Ann joined the Red Cross and  spent the next eight months entertaining the troops in a club in Fountainbleau, France and in Bavaria, Germany, where, as she recalled,  ‘I gave dance lessons, called bingo, and served donuts to the troops’ until she returned to the States.

Back home in Xenia,  Mary Ann worked at the Institute of Technology at Wright Patterson AFB as an ‘Artist Illustrator’.  It was there in 1949 that she met her husband, Capt. Lawrence Gordon, a West Point graduate.  Her first date?  She laughingly recalled that ‘He took me to bingo!’  They were married in December and lived in Fairborn, Ohio until he graduated from the Air Force’s  aeronautical engineering training program in 1950.   

For the next twenty-nine years Mary Ann was an ‘Air Force Wife’ and lived on many Air Force bases in many places, including  Kwajalein Island (where the Gordons set up house in a quonset hut),  England,  Massachusetts, D.C., Scott Field, and her favorite of them all:  Patrick AFB, Florida.  Her husband, by that time,  was an Air Force  General.  They were stationed there until he retired.   

Of all the things Mary Ann was able to do in her life—all the travels and adventures—when asked what was the one thing she was most proud of, her answer came back swiftly and clearly, ‘Being a WASP!’

 In September, 2009, Mary Ann was presented a copy of the Congressional Gold Medal Bill by her Congressman, Bill Posey, at the Officers’ Club at Patrick Air Force Base, which was attended by her many friends. 

On March 10, 2010  one of her nieces picked up her Congressional Gold Medal for her in D.C.    A photo of the medal and collage of pictures from the ceremony  were placed on Mary Ann's  bedroom wall where she could see them every time she rolled in and out of the bedroom in her wheel chair.  She also received her WASP ‘Illustrated History Of The WASP’ book,  so she was able to see her picture and her quote.   

A memorial service for Mary Ann Baldner Gordon will be held in Indian Harbour Beach, Florida at Beach Funeral Home on June 16 at 2 pm  with  friends gathering time at 1:00 pm.

Mary Ann was preceded in death by her husband, Larry, sister Jane and brother-in-law Larry Davis, sister-in-law Nancy Baldner, and grand nephew Michael McVey.   Mary Ann  is survived by her younger brother, John, who is also a graduate of West Point and  an AF pilot.  She is also survived by her 7 nieces:  Jane's daughters Debby Haines, Susie Dillon and Becky Lister  and John's daughters: Kathy, Laurie, Nancy and Tricia, along with 2 grand nieces and 3 grand nephews,   as well as many friends. 

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Facts and quotes taken from the Wings Across America interview with Mary Ann Gordon, April 26, 2003 in her home at Satellite Beach, Florida.  We were honored to spend the day with Mary Ann and her husband, BRIGADIER GENERAL LAWRENCE N. GORDON.  May their service to America forever be remembered.
    Respectfully submitted, Nancy and Deanie Parrish

WASP Suzanne Delano Parish, 44-W-6

'As I acquired each new flight rating, I would wire Jacqueline Cochran, 

"Do you need me now?"  I wanted so badly to be a part of that group and to serve the war effort to the best of my abilities. I figured if I could just keep exceeding the requirements  for entry, my age would be overlooked.'  Suzanne DeLano Parish, WASP

The sad news came over the phone just a few hours ago.  A reporter in Michigan called to say that  WASP Sue Parish passed away in her California home yesterday.  She was 87.

Suzanne Parish, a lifelong Kalamazoo, Michigan resident, who was co-founder and vice chairwoman of the Kalamazoo Aviation History Museum, better known as the Air Zoo, and a member of the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame, had been in failing health, said her son Will Parish.

“Our mother was a woman whom I and all my siblings admired for living a life of many passions,” he said.

“She was an avid pilot, loving to perform loops and barrel rolls and fly-overs at air shows around the country. She was an accomplished equestrian who competed very successfully in many local horse shows for years.

“She loved acting in local theaters and was quite well known for portraying her characters vividly and with great creativity,” he said.

"She will always be an inspiration to us.”

Suzanne Upjohn Delano was born in New York City, New York in 1922.  Granddaughter of W.E. Upjohn, founder of Kalamazoo's Upjohn Co, Sue spent her early childhood in France, returning to Kalamazoo in 1929.  


Her passion in her early teens was horses, and Sue had planned to attend Cornell and become a veterinarian.  She was a gifted horsewoman but a fall in 1941 and a fractured ankle derailed her plans.  As Sue put it, "I was restless, getting on my mother's nerves, hobbling around the house on crutches, so she suggested I take flying lessons."  


She took her first lessons from Irving Woodhams, who carried a pilot's license signed by Orville Wright.  "I loved it so much that flying became my passion." 


When America entered World War II and the WASP program first started, Sue was in a hurry to join.  She wanted to fly for her country, but she wasn't old enough.   Every rejection was met with more determination to continue flying and another letter to WASP Director, Jacqueline Cochran.  By the time she was old enough to apply for the training program, Sue had a commercial license, instrument rating, instructor's rating and ten times as many hours as required. When she turned 21,  She was accepted as a member of class 44-6.  She  arrived at Avenger Field in Sweetwater, Texas, and survived seven months of Army Air Force flight training in the hot, windy, west Texas summer,  flying the PT-17's, BT-13's and AT-6's.  She completing the exact same training as the male AAF cadets and graduated on August 4, 1944.


After earning her silver WASP wings, Sue was assigned to Army Air Force Instrument Instruction School in Bryan, Texas, as a test pilot.  She flew with returning combat pilots who needed instrument flying and flight tested the repaired planes before the male pilots were allowed to fly them.  


After the WASP were disbanded, Dec. 20, 1944, Sue wrote to every aviation company and airline in search of job as pilot. She even lobbied her  uncle, John Gilmore, who was then President of the Upjohn Company.  Her uncle John  was not yet ready to hire a 'female' pilot.


In 1945, Sue married Preston "Pete" Parish.  Eventually, the couple had five children: Barbie Parish, Katie Anne Miller, Will Parish, Pres Parish, and Dave Parish.  When Pete decided to purchase half interest in a single-engine 35C Bonanza, they both began flying again, and began collecting an armada of aviation history that would eventually evolve into the cornerstone of the Kalamazoo Air Zoo.  The Parish's co-founded the Air Zoo in 1977. Sue's pink P-40, which she flew at many air shows for over a quarter of a century, hangs from the ceiling at the main entrance to the Air Zoo. 


Sue was a board member of the Michigan Space Center in Jackson, the Civic Auditorium, the P-40 Warhawk Pilots Association, Holderness School, the Ninety-Nines, Nazareth College, and was inducted into the Michigan Aviation Hall of Fame and the EAA Warbirds of America Hall of Fame.  Her last accolade was presented to all the WASP on March 10, 2010: the Congressional Gold Medal, for their pioneering, patriotic service to our nation.


She is survived by her 5 children and 14 grandchildren.


Sue represented a very special kind of pioneering pilot -- she didn't really enjoy talking about flying, she loved FLYING.  She was a gentle, kind and insatiably curious woman, with a giant sized smile that lit up every room she ever entered.  Sue was a lady -- a fearless flyer -- a pioneer -- a WASP. 


It was such a joy to see her in Washington DC -- on March 10, 2010, to receive her Congressional Gold medal replica.  She was beaming from the inside out. We met Sue and Norm Carter in the center of Emancipation Hall. They both lobbied for the Fly Girls Exhibit to travel to the Kalamazoo Air Zoo.  They encouraged Museum Director, Bob Ellis to travel to DC and see the exhibit, which he did.  Sue's passion for educating and inspiring young people about aviation has been contagious.  Because of Sue, the  Fly Girls traveling WASP exhibit will open at the Air Zoo at the end of May. We are so sad that she will not be able to see it, but also grateful that she was able to see it at the Women's Memorial and honored to be able to share the exhibit in such an extraordinary place-- which now serves as a living tribute to Sue Parish's passion for flying and for education.

MORE:

Obituary in the Kalamazoo News

Sue's pink P-40  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vajQyOhRl1Q

Article on Sue, published in 1999

History of the Air Zoo and Sue's legacy and love of aviation.

Kalamazoo Gazette  on Sue Parish--2009