04/22/2025
Big cheers for a local Coast Guard SPAR who is celebrating her 100th Birthday! Want to wish her a Happy Birthday? Her daughter is hoping to get 100 birthday cards for her Mom's special day on May 12th.
USCG WWII Veteran Ena Reynolds Slaughter enlisted in Dayton, Ohio and went to boot camp in Sheepshead Bay, NY in May 1945. During WWII, Wright Field recruited female high school graduates, instructing them in various trades at West Virginia Wesleyan College to replace the civilian men who left for the war. Ena Slaughter was one of those young women, and she trained to work in the fuel, l**e, and paint lab. Her job was to ensure those items met certain quality specifications before use on aircraft.
She started recruit training and WWII ended two weeks later. She and the new SPARs rode the subway into New York City to celebrate. She was sent to Charleston, SC. Ena worked in the laundry for a couple of days until the Coast Guard realized she had lab training. There, she ran tests and gave injections until she was released from service in February 1946.
Post-military, she used the GI Bill, raised three girls, and worked in medical offices. Ena still says that that joining the Coast Guard was one of the best things she has ever done, was proud to have served, and felt like she was helping to win the war by โfreeing a man to fight.โ ๐บ๐ธ
Cards should be addressed to: WWII CG SPAR Ena Slaughter, c/o Jo Anne Feinstein, 12826 Cijon Street, San Diego, CA 92129.
Here's a few photos. Semper Paratus Miss Ena!
USCG Chief Petty Officers Association - San Diego Chapter U.S. Coast Guard San Diego U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Southwest