One of first black women to serve overseas in WWII dies

By Jaedda Armstrong

CHESAPEAKE

Gladys Schuster Carter may be remembered for her military career – she was one of the first black women to serve overseas in the Army during World War II. But to her close friends and family, friendliness was her most important trait.

“She would interact with people off the street and end up having a conversation with them,” said Carter’s oldest son, Oscar Carter. “She talked to any and everyone.”

Carter, a New York City native, died Tuesday at age 87.

When Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941, she was attending Virginia State University.

At that time, Uncle Sam was looking for a few good black women to join the military in Europe.

She immediately enlisted.

Carter’s unit, the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, included 885 black Women’s Army Corps (WAC) members who were charged with clearing up a huge backlog of mail sent to military troops overseas.

The job was expected to take six months, but the unit, working round-the-clock in eight-hour shifts, finished the job in three.

The surviving members of that unit weren’t publicly recognized for their achievement – moving 7 million pieces of mail – until earlier this year.

“She didn’t hold any anger in her heart for the delayed recognition,” said Oscar Carter. “She felt they had nothing more to prove.”

After her two-year stint in the Army, she came back to Virginia to finish her education. She worked for the New York State Division for Youth and retired as principal after 25 years.

Carter moved back to Virginia over a decade ago and became active in veterans affairs, helping start the local chapter of the National Association of Black Military Women.

“She’s an extraordinary person,” said Fredda Bryan, a retired Navy senior chief and president of the local chapter. “When you talk to Gladys you feel like you’re walking through a history book.”

Carter would talk to the younger women about the racism her unit faced while in the Army, said Bryan.

“It’s a blessing to get a chance to be around a person whose shoulders you stand on,” said Bryan, who considered Carter a mentor.

“The road I’m on now is paved because of women like her,” said Bryan. “It’s a once in a lifetime blessing to meet someone like her, and I’m glad I got that chance.”

Carter’s funeral service will be at 10 a.m. Friday at Episcopal Church of the Messiah, 816 Kempsville, Road, Chesapeake. The Washington Post contributed to this report.

Jaedda Armstrong, (757) 222-5846, jaedda.armstrong@pilotonline.com