European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 1, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Sunday july 1, 1990 the stars and Stripe v Page 9 Over reformer wac recounts her role in Wii by Peggy Davidson Kaiserslautern Bureau Baum older West Germany a when a Day troops stormed the beaches at Normandy Ellen p. Mcsherry was battling paperwork at Allied exp dictionary Force Headquarters in London. A but within a few months of the invasion her platoon had landed at Normandy making her one of the first women a army corps wac soldiers in Europe. The units task was to provide clerical sup. Port for Gen. Dwight d. Eisenhower son the move Headquarters. True to army tradition Mcsherry had hurried up to wait. The first few weeks were spent in Normandy France a mainly killing time Quot she recalls. But soon she was on the Road. And the next year was to provide Mcsherry with a lifetime of recollections. She was in Europe during the final  the War in Paris to celebrate the demise of the third Reich and in a bombed out Frankfurt As a member of the occupying army. Now Mcsherry has resumed to Europe up the first time in 45 years. It has been a trip of pleasant surprises and powerful memories an Opportunity to reacquaint herself with her youth. Its a far different visit than in 1944, when she travelled from Normandy to Paris on the red Ball express the famed Supply Convoy that fuelled Gen. George s. Patton a drive into Germany. Transit on the red Ball qualified the was for the american service medal. A in Paris her unit established office support for the Allied come. She saw Eisenhower Many times she said and even talked Brief y with him once. Mcsherry was drawn to the army because of her desire to see the world. A a in be always been a wanderer. There was a certain amount of patriotism with the War and All but that a not the reason i to inc a. 1 wanted to  and travel she tied. The Louisville ky., native enlisted in the women a army auxiliary corps on i us. 13, 1943. She completed Basic clerical training Daytona be cd fla., and by sept. 6, found herself on a ship ii Convoy to Europe she landed at Liverpool England on oct. 18. About that time the corps was predesignated the women a army corps providing women in uniform with similar benefits As male soldiers. Mcsherry then in her mid-20s, made the most of her year in London travelling to Ireland and Scotland. It was in London that she met the Man she was to marry warrant officer John l. A Jack Quot Mcsherry. It was a time of mixed emotions she recalls. She was a scared to death Quot about being stationed in Lon Don. In 1944, the City still was being hit by German rockets which the British dubbed a Buzz  Elysee s&s1. Lynda Dave Foo Ella amp a Mcsherry a \. Id do it All Over again a the bombs sounded like a Lart Mower and a when the noise stopped that a when you had to run Quot she said. A. _. A Bute she Learned to live with fear. A like Many things you get so used to it you done to do the things you re supposed to  once she said she and her husband to by were walking in a Park having ignored an air raid warning. Suddenly they heard a Buzz bomb. He threw her to the ground and covered her with his body. Afterwards they found a Large chunk of shrapnel close by. A that piece of shrapnel just missed us a she said. A we kept it for a Long  i Jack Mcsherry died in 1979. They had been married 33 years. In Paris during the War Mcsherry travelled and visited landmarks such As Versailles when she could. She was billeted in a hotel just off the champs est i could go right to it but i done to remember the Street name Quot she said. Her unit marched with the other Allied units in a Victory Parade through Paris when Germany  the War Over the unit was needed in Frankfurt to handle the mountains of clerical work that accompanied Victory. So in 1945, Mcsherry found Hersel handing at the Frankfurt Airport. A the Germany i saw was rubble a Mcsherry said a i  believe it when they flew us in. It was a Long Gray Field with rubble everywhere Quot Frankfurt was a startling change from London and Paris. A the women were not allowed out without an armed guard. We could t go out  she worked in the la. Farben building the for mar Headquarters of the chemical conglomerate. Renamed by the . Army after Gen. Creighton Abrams the building today houses v corps Headquarters. She lived near the Farben building sharing a bomb damaged Home with 11 other was. A i was Lucky i got to sleep on a real bed Quot Mcsherry said. Quot the others had cots. That was the first time i had seen a player piano and we worked it to  everything was left by the German resident dishes Cut Irv everything Quot Mcsherry said. "1 fell guilty. What if this had happened to me 1 know we were in a War in a War to win but you can to take the human element  today a Germany has surprised Mcsherry. Although she knew the country had been rebuilt she didst expect the Frankfurt Airport to be so huge and bustling. She said she had t understood Why her son had beam worried about getting parking and finding her when she arrived. Sol Patrick Mcsherry is a personnel specialist in Baum Holder. He gave his Mother the in to Germany to repay her for a fall the things she did for me things she Aidna to have to do Quot a she likes travelling. She s always going in Little trips a he said. The German people also have surprised and pleased Mcsherry. On her first trip she never had the Opportunity to meet germans she a made up for that this time. ,. Her son s in Laws Are German and the families have spent some warm moments together she said. A i find this remarkable. In a from the South and i know Southern hospitality Quot Mcsherry said. A but i came Here and the hospitality is  Mcsherry intends to visit the Abrams building and walk the streets that were ruins in 1945. She wants to show her son the building where she lived and rekindle memories of her first visit to Germany most of those memories arc Good ones. A i enjoyed it from the first Day to the last Quot Mcsherry said a Al Al was Young id do it All Over  Kelso Dugan join ranks of by the los Angeles times Annapolis my. Under a willing Sun in the historic courtyard of the . Naval Academy a Bancroft Hall the Navy Friday rang eight Bells for the change of watch at the Pinnacle of the 215-year-old service. Quot after four years As chief of naval operations adm. Carlisle . Trost was ceremonially relieved of command by his successor adm. Frank b. Kelso ii another Veteran of the submarine service. Trost took the Opportunity to warn the nation against a spreading a epidemic or euphoria brought on by the disintegration of the communist regimes of the Warsaw pact a Day earlier at Andrews fab 10 Miles Southeast of Washington Gen with Congress Oyer the size and Mission of . Armed forces. From their seats on the joint chiefs of the Senate armed services committee. A if this turns out to be the Case they May even emphasize submarines More. Stac Kelso and Dugan will help shape that along with their having the largest the Pentagon a future. Their voices will sub Force in the world makes it most affect arms control agreements limiting prudent and 1 believe very necessary conventional and nuclear arms and their that we continue healthy Antt submarine convictions will help determine whether warfare research and maintain robust and when the nation will Send troops ask forces a said Kelso who most re into harms Way. Gently served As commander of the . A this nation has required sea Power Atlantic come based in Norfolk a. From its inception to ensure its Security Quot Kelso already has been a leading Force Kelso said upon taking the Navy Helm in shaping a future role for the Navy in a we will undoubtedly have difficulty in one of the Pentagon hottest new pros thess changing times reaching consensus pets a the drug War. As Atlantic come on How much is enough. But in this de Boss Kelso prepared of one of the most Bale my goal is Clear a to maintain  maritime  Kelso indicated during his recent confirmation hearings that he intends to much Tuuu Iasi a Mii Uibo ill Uia Vii Larry d. Welch the air Force chief of place increasing emphasis on undersea staff similarly was formally replaced by warfare. Gen. Michael j. Dugan who Rose from a conceded that a major conflict the ranks of fighter pilots. The ceremony with the soviet Union has grown increase was punctuated by a flyby of the air in Gay unlikely but said that if it does forces new Al 17 stealth fighter come it is More Likely to be a subsurface the two new service chiefs join the game of cat and mouse. _ nations senior military brotherhood at a a the soviets May with the col apse of time of shrinking military budgets the Central eur Jean a her states a sweeping change in the world s Security systems and at the Dawn of a Jong Battle More emphasis on the interdiction of the sea lines of communication a Kelso told aggressive responses to defense Secretary Dick Cheney Scall for new initiatives by the military a principal Field commands. Among the proposals Kelso sent to Cheney was to dispatch an Armada of . Navy ships led by an , to patrol for drug traffickers off the coast of Colombia. Once , the initiative sparked a diplomatic firestorm Between Washington and Bogota and was quickly shelved. Dugan the new air for chief is described by fellow officer a As a genial irishman who will use his fighter Jock Bonhomie to cultivate Good relations with lawmakers. His style is a distinct contrast to that of his predecessor who won respect More for his analytical prowess than his warmth. Like most air Force chiefs of staff in the youngest services history Dugan is a  As the air Force stakes its future on its ability to bring firepower to Bear in Distant places it is still notable that Dugan wears the wings of a Pilot rather than the a pocket rocket Quot insignia that distinguishes air Force missile officers. In budget proposals submitted to Cheney the air Force has do emphasized modernization of its Long Range nuclear missile Force in favor of maintaining and improving its nuclear and conventional aircraft such As the b-2 bomber and the advanced tactical fighter. In confirmation testimony Dugan reflected the air forces new emphasis. A the air Force must be prepared for projecting american Power in the context of a new world order Quot Dugan said. A for most of the contingencies we Are Likely to face in the future there is an a air options that we Are uniquely Able to execute in support of National objectives Quot he added