Nation's oldest female veteran, 108-year-old Lucy Coffey, fulfills her dream
Visit to Washington, D.C. includes meeting with Obama and Biden
Stars and Stripes
By Meredith Tibbetts
Published: July 26, 2014
WASHINGTON — Lucy Coffey, at age 108 the nation's oldest living female military veteran, dreamed of going to the Women in Military Service for America Memorial in Arlington, Va. This weekend she got her wish ... and then some.
Coffey was greeted with thunderous applause on Friday at Reagan National Airport, and was then welcomed to the White House by President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.
Though Coffey — who was part of the Women's Army Corps during World War II — did not walk on this trip and cannot speak, she was actively engaging with the people around her.
Staff Sgt. Lucy Coffey enlisted in 1943, around the time of her 37th birthday. She had tried to enlist several times before that, but was rejected for being too short or too slim. Donning extra weights on her legs, she passed the weight minimum of 100 pounds.
While in the Women's Army Corps, she earned two Bronze Stars, a WAC Service Medal, a Good Conduct Medal and a World War II Victory Medal. Coffey was one of 150,000 women who served as WACs during the war.
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