Wings Across America
Archival Website
Projects
Projects
The centerpiece of Wings Across America is The Digital Archive of WASP Interviews, videotaped between 1999 and 2008. These unique interviews have now been uploaded to their permanent home at Baylor University. With the digitized footage now online, everything is possible, from electronic kiosks to up-conversion for film projects.
Below are links to individual video clips from the WASP Collection. These clips have been used online and continue to inspire visitors to this website and beyond. They are still a wonderful way to meet a few of the Women Airforce Service Pilots of WWII.
Locations of WASP Interviews Across America
Waco, Texas: Wings Across America’s first interview.
Daughter Barby Williams interviews WASP Deanie Parrish
Waco, Texas, Baylor Studio: WASP Anita Paul, aka Sister Teresa
flew in from Guadeloupe, French Antillies for her interview after receiving special permission from Rome.
Austin, Texas: Nancy Parrish, WASP Millie Dalrymple and Joani Livingston, PBS Producer, Director KCTF who drove with us to Austin to shoot the interview.
Witchita Falls, Texas: Our first road trip north.
WASP Marion Hodgson, WASP Deanie and Nancy Parrish
Marion outside her home with
a sweet little PT 17.
Galveston, Texas: WASP Barbara Heinrich,
WASP Deanie Parrish, Nancy Parrish
Austin, Texas: WASP Susie Bain and WASP Deanie Parrish
in Susie’s treetop home near LadyBird Lake.
Ingram, Texas: WASP Nan Hazeltine, WASP Deanie Parrish, Nancy Parrish
Waco, Texas: WASP Rose Alice Palmer, WASP Deanie Parrish,
Nancy Parrish In the Baylor Studio.
Austin, Texas: WASP Kay and Col Al D’Arezzo
La Fiera, Texas: WASP Muriel Martin, WASP Deanie Parrish
La Fiera, Texas: WASP Muriel Martin and her favorite horse.
San Antonio, Texas: WASP Madge Moore and WASP Deanie Parrish
Madge’s family heirloom quilt.
San Antonio, Texas: WASP Betty Shipley, WASP Deanie and Nancy Parrish
Odessa, Texas. KOCV Odessa College TV control room.
WASP Ruth Florey (on screen) and volunteer crew.
Waco, Texas: WASP Rita Wischmeyer in the Wings Office Studio
Fredericksburg, Texas: WASP Rosa Lea Fullwood, WASP Deanie Parrish
Rosa Lea surrounded by her Ballroom Dancing Trophies
Alice, Texas: WASP Maxine Flournoy and WASP Deanie Parrish
Alice, Texas: Nancy and WASP Deanie Parrish with Lucien
and WASP Maxine Flournoy at their airplane hangar.
Sweetwater, Texas: WASP Instructor Harl Pinkard and his sweet wife, Tula Mae.
Odessa, Texas in the control room at Odessa College PBS station, KOCV.
WASP Ruth Florey on screen with volunteer crew.
San Antonio, Texas: WASP Ann Holladay, WASP Deanie Parrish, Nancy Parrish
WASP Ann Holiday with her life-like hand-carved birds.
Beautiful creations!
Victoria, Texas: WASP Eleanor Micky Brown
Houston, Texas: WASP Sandy Thompson
Leuders, Texas: WASP Mary Vandeventer standing in front of the home
where she was born, and eventually moved back to.
Waco, Texas: Baylor Studio with WASP Mary Helen Foster Crane
and WASP Deanie Parrish. Mary Helen and her husband drove from Northport, Alabama for this interview. So grateful for her commitment to our project.
Rio Hondo, Texas: WASP Millie Christiansen
and tiny companion.
West Texas: WASP Instructor Tom Moore and his wife.
El Paso, Texas: WASP Lois Hailey
Amarillo, Texas: KACV TV: WASP Deanie Parrish and WASP Florene Watson.
This interview lasted well past dinner time. The studio crew handed Florine the keys and asked her to lock up when we were finished.
Waco, Texas: WASP Grace Jones and her nephew John Rosanky
in the Wings office on South Ninth Street. They came in from Salado, just south of Waco. John offered to drive, but Grace insisted on driving FAST. She nearly got a ticket, but talked the nice policman into giving her ‘just a warning.’
Weatherford, Texas: WASP Jo Wheelis
Tulsa, Oklahoma: WASP Mary Jones Wilkinson and WASP Deanie Parrish in Mary’s Airplane Hanger Office
Tulsa, Oklahoma: WASP Grace Fender and WASP Deanie Parrish I’ll never forget,
Grace was standing by her front picture window waiting for us and waved as we pulled in.
Sandsprings, Oklahoma:
WASP Mary Helen Burke, WASP Deanie Parrish
Mary Helen’s beautiful needlework
Tulsa, Oklahoma: WASP Betty Smith and proud husband, Van
Waco, Texas: A year later, Sister Teresa (WASP Anita Paul) rode 23 hours to return to Texas
She told her Superior she needed to come back ‘to help edit!’ So glad she did.
Baylor’s Robinson Tower, Wings Across America’s 7th floor edit suite:
showing Sister Teresa her video.
Cave Creek, Arizona: WASP Betty Tackaberry Blake, Nancy Parrish
Sun City West, Arizona:
WASP Dori Martin, WASP Deanie Parrish
Tucson, Arizona:
WASP Alberta Kinney, WASP Deanie Parrish
Chandler, Arizona: WASP Lee Doerr, Nancy Parrish.
Marriott Courtyard Conference Room
Phoenix, Arizona:
WASP Janet Downer, WASP Deanie Parrish
One of Janet’s beautiful watercolors.
Apache Junction, Arizona: WASP Evelyn Jackson
and WASP Deanie Parrish. City Hall Conference Room
Mesa, Arizona:
WASP Frankie Park, WASP Deanie Parrish
WASP Betty Jo Reed’s interview in the
Champlin Fighter Museum conference room
WASP Betty Jo Reed in front of the Champlin Fighter Museum. Great place to interview a WASP!
Salome, Arizona:
WASP Carol Selfridge, WASP Deanie Parrish
Casa Grande, Arizona:
WASP Geri Nyman and her beautiful loom.
Tucson, Arizona:
WASP Alberta Kinney, WASP Deanie Parrish
Green Valley, Arizona:
WASP Dawn Seymour, WASP Deanie Parrish
Nancy and Dawn in the front yard.
Tucson, Arizona:
WASP Sylvia Clayton, WASP Deanie Parrish
Phoenix Arizona:
WASP Margaret Tamplin, WASP Deanie Parrish
Sedona, Arizona: WASP Nell Bright
Showing computer savy Nell our website.
Sedona, Arizona: WASP Beverly Wilkinson on her back deck,
overlooking the red rocks of Arizona.
Mary Ester, Florida:
WASP Mary Jo Tilton, WASP Deanie Parrish
Sun City, Arizona:
WASP Betty Jo ‘BJ’ Brown, WASP Deanie Parrish
Melbourne, Florida:
WASP Mary Ann Gordon, WASP Deanie Parrish
Palm Coast, Florida:
WASP Penny Halberg, WASP Deanie Parrish
Rivera Beach, Florida:
WASP Bee Haydu, Joe Haydu
Jacksonville, Florida:
WASP Doris Hamaker, WASP Deanie Parrish
Doris’s quilt made in honor of her husband’s service in the Navy
Miami, Florida: WASP Fran Sargeant
Palm Coast, Florida:
WASP Mary Hearn, WASP Deanie Parrish
Pompano Beach, Florida:
WASP Shirley Kruse, WASP Deanie Parrish
Cocoa Beach, Florida:
WASP Carolyn Miller, WASP Deanie Parrish
Carolyn with her champion yorkies.
Jensen Beach, Florida:
WASP Marianne Nutt, Nancy Parrish
Sun City, Arizona: WASP Betty Jo ‘B.J.’ Brown with WASP Deanie Parrish
20 foot flagpole with American Flag flying.
Vero Beach, Florida:
WASP Joan Lemley, Nancy Parrish
Vero Beach,: Joan’s favorite restaurant.
Pompano Beach, Florida: WASP FLorine Maloney and husband Mac, USMC Ret.
with their beautiful boat in the background.
Pointe Vedra, Florida:
WASP Janet Simpson, WASP Deanie Parrish
Janet loved the Afghan!
Jensen Beach, Florida: WASP Jackie Carmine and WASP Deanie Parrish
Jackie’s beautiful view from her balcony.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida: WASP Deanie Parrish and WASP Mary Burchard,
US Flag flying.
Homestead, Florida: WASP Ruth Fleisher and puppy with Nancy and WASP Deanie Parrish. Ruth’s beautiful back yard is a grove of avocados and fruit trees.
Pompano Beach, Florida: WASP Tex Meachem modeling her official ‘red hat’
as a new member of the “Red Hat Society.”
Niece Nora and WASP Kaddy Landry Steele. This was the one Florida interview we were unable to do. Kaddy wasn’t up to it when we arrived, so we left her a stuffed flying bear and promised to return on our next trip. Sadly, Kaddy passed away about a week after this photo was taken. I’m including it because she wanted to be part of our Wings Across America Archive. Now, she is.
Coahoma, Mississippi: WASP Betty Fernandes with one of her dogs.
Hattiesburg, Mississippi:
WASP Edna ‘Kitty’ Bishop, WASP Deanie Parrish
Memphis, Tennessee: WASP Lillian Goodman, Nancy and WASP Deanie Parrish.
Did the interview in the den display room: her husband was a pharmacist and collector.
Colorado Springs, Colorado:
WASP Millie Young, WASP Deanie Parrish
Golden, Colorado: WASP Rosina ‘Rosie’ Todd’s beautiful mountain top view
with WASP Deanie Parrish
Aspen, Colorado: WASP Ruth Humphries Brown,
WASP Deanie and Nancy Parrish
Aspen, Colorado:
WASP Betty Pfister, WASP Deanie Parrish
Grand Junction, Colorado:
WASP Annabelle Moss, Nancy Parrish
Annabell’s painting and quilting work. Just a few samples.
Ann Arbor, Michigan: WASP Marie Clark, WASP Deanie Parrish
Marie and husband John Clark, former WWII B-26 pilot and engineer.
Grand Rapids, Wisconsin: WASP Deanie Parrish and WASP Jane Doyle. Baymates in training.
Kalamazoo, Michigan: WASP Suzanne Parish, WASP Deanie Parrish,
Nancy Parrish in Suzanne’s office at the Air Zoo
Air Zoo Hangar: Sue’s Pink P-40—flown many hours
at many airshows across the country.
Germantown, Wisconsin:
WASP Jeanette Kapus, WASP Deanie Parrish
Jeanette’s machine to help her read, despite her macular degeneration.
Albuquerque, New Mexico:
WASP Anne Noggle, WASP Deanie Parrish
Anne with her precious furry family.
Albuquerque, New Mexico: WASP Mildred ‘Rexy’ Rexroat, WASP Deanie Parrish
Rexy was a proud Lakota, the only Native American WASP.
Eureka, Kansas: WASP Roby Anderson at her beefalo “Dead End Ranch’
with WASP Deanie and Nancy Parrish
Moberly Missouri: WASP Rose Penny Ross and son
Fairbault, Minnesota: WASP Betty Strohfus and WASP Deanie Parrish
Memphis, Tennessee:
WASP Frankie Yearwood, WASP Deanie and Nancy Parrish
Union City, Tennessee:
WASP Doris Tanner and classmate WASP Deanie Parrish
Shreveport, Louisana:
Charlyne Creger, Nancy and WASP Deanie Parrish
Waco, Texas: Office on 4th street. Charlyne wanted to visit to ‘see’ what we were up to. Charlyne = Joy, always.
Idyllwild, California: WASP and talented artist, Dot Lewis
No interview, but we cherished the memories of our visit.
Tucson, Arizona: WASP Catherine Murphy at the WASP Convention. From the very beginning, Catherine quietly helped Wings Across America. Because of her, we were able to contact every WASP. Although we were never able to interview Catherine, her support of our work never wavered. Years later, she surprised us by remembering Wings Across America in her will. This is my heartfelt thank you to a generous, kind and soft-spoken WASP who believed in our mission.
Waco, Texas, the Wings Across America Office on 4th St. WASP Betty Turner and WASP Jean McCreery came from Ohio for their interviews. They brought us a Fifi banner.
a few stills from
in their homes, offices, PBS Stations, museums, hotel conference rooms, City Hall, an airplane hangar
and a beefalo ranch.
After we had completed about 50 interviews, Wings Across America purchased a CD/DVD duplicator so that we could digitize and copy the interviews onto DVDs, four at a time. Eventually, I made all 110, making sure every WASP or her family received a copy of her interview.
I created a template for the DVDs, then personalized and printed each one and shipped the interviews in individual cases to the WASP. We soon began receiving requests from WASP who wanted additional copies to share with their families, local museums and libraries. We were delighted that these stories were precious to the WASP themselves — and that they wanted to share their service with others.
Questions about the Wings Across America
Oral History Collection?
WIings Across America
Archival Website
