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2010 SESSION


SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 36
Celebrating the life of Gladys Schuster Carter.
 
Agreed to by the Senate, January 14, 2010
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, January 22, 2010
 

WHEREAS, Gladys Schuster Carter of Chesapeake, a beloved citizen, community leader, and a respected advocate for women in the military, died on June 30, 2009; and

WHEREAS, Gladys S. Carter was a junior at Virginia State University when Pearl Harbor was attacked; like many patriotic Americans, she was immediately inspired to serve her country by enlisting in the United States Armed Forces; and

WHEREAS, Private First Class Gladys S. Carter faithfully served in the United States Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) and the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) from February 1943 to November 1945; and

WHEREAS, after basic training, PFC Gladys S. Carter attended Army Clerical School and was first assigned as a clerk in the Army hospital X-ray department at Fort Riley, Kansas, and then as assistant director of the enlisted men’s service club at Walla Walla Army Air Base in Washington state; and

WHEREAS, extremely proud of her WAAC/WAC service overseas, PFC Gladys S. Carter was a member of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, the only unit of African American women to serve in the European Theater during World War II, which was established solely to ensure that the massive volume of letters, packages, and boxes of food sent from home in the United States made it to the soldiers fighting on the front lines; and

WHEREAS, while in the military, Gladys Schuster married Oscar “Tank” Carter, Jr., and the loving couple enjoyed 56 years together and had two sons, three granddaughters, and a great-grandson; and

WHEREAS, after serving two years of active duty, Gladys S. Carter completed her education at Virginia State University, earning a bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master’s degree in education; and

WHEREAS, Gladys S. Carter worked for the New York State Division for Youth and retired as a principal after 25 years of service as an educator; and

WHEREAS, Gladys S. Carter generously gave her time and talents to many veteran’s organizations and was a passionate leader and member of the National Association of Black Military Women (NABMW), serving on the executive board and as a founding member of the NABMW Greater Hampton Roads Virginia Chapter; and

WHEREAS, Gladys S. Carter will be fondly remembered for her kind and generous nature and greatly missed by her family and her numerous friends and admirers; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly mourn the passing of an outstanding Virginian, Gladys Schuster Carter; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the family of Gladys Schuster Carter as an expression of the General Assembly’s respect for her memory.