"It
is really wonderful to think the war is over.
Thousands of people were turned off at Boeing last week among them were
Aunt Frances and Wilma Jean. I haven't
heard from Flo yet so do not know about her yet. Lois Arlene was still working yet for a few
days. Mildred has also been turned off
at Beech but Carol is still working.
"Aunt
Edith received a telegram from Wayne, who has arrived in Boston last Sun.
evening. He thought he would be home
soon.
"Claude
Davenport arrived home early yesterday morning and had received his
discharge. He is very happy to be home
and be a civilian once more. He even put
on civilian clothes the first day. He has some terrible tales to tell of the
fierce battles he took part in. Jerry
Wanzer[?] is also home from Italy but has not been discharged yet."
-- Letter from my grandmother, Bloomington,
Kans., to my father, Boulder, Colo., Thursday, August 23, 1945. All of the women mentioned in the first paragraph were my father's aunts or cousins working at Boeing and Beech -- aircraft production plants around Wichita.