WWII Nurse Receiving French Foreign Legion of Honor

Veteran Army nurse to receive French Legion of Honor
Rusty Rice will receive France's highest award for her service in the Army during WWII
WDBJ7
Reporter Nadine Maeser Nadine Maeser
December 26, 2014

BLACKSBURG, Va.
A Blacksburg woman will be recognized for her service to our country on Saturday.

Rusty Rice served as a nurse in World War II and nearly 70 years later, she's receiving the highest honor from France.

Rice, 94, is set to receive the French Legion of Honor.

She is the second veteran in Virginia to receive it.

“I'm nervous,” she said.

Rice, a New Jersey native, worked as a registered nurse in a maternity ward before joining the Army in her early 20's.

"I was an Army nurse and I happened to be stationed where the Battle of the Bulge was occurring and it was a very difficult time."

Rice said she loved serving her country.

"Much to my mother's horror she wouldn't hear of it, but then my brother was drafted,” she said.

Rice gained her mother’s approval after she explained there might not be enough nurses to care for her brother.
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