Lucinda F Coffey (1906 - 2015)

Born 14 May 1906 in Indiana, United States

Ancestors

Died 19 Mar 2015 at age 108 in San Antonio, Bexar, Texas, United States

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Biography

World War II, Women's Army Corps (WAC)

Lucy Coffey was a centenarian, living to age 108.

Lucinda "Lucy" F. Coffey was born in 1906 in Indiana. ^[1] Her parents were Phillip Coffey and Carrie Miller.

Lucy Coffey was part of the Women’s Army Corps during World War II. Coffey enlisted in 1943, around the time of her 37th birthday. , ^[2] She had tried to enlist several times before, but was rejected for being too short or too slim.

Coffey served mainly in the Pacific theater, going to Australia and Dutch New Guinea before finally arriving in the Philippines in April 1945. Her last stop was Okinawa, Japan.

While in the Army, Lucy worked as an accountant-statistician and served in the procurement office. She achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant E-6.

Coffey was honorably discharged in November 1945, but stayed in Japan as a civil servant for about 10 years. She later transferred to Kelly Air Force Base in San Antonio where she worked until her retirement in 1971.

SSG Lucy F Coffey earned two Bronze Stars (for support services in the Philippines and what is now Dutch New Guinea), a WAC Service Medal, a Good Conduct Medal and a World War II Victory Medal. While in the WAAC, she was present for the Luzcon campaign ^[3] and was awarded the Philippine Liberation Ribbon with a bronze star. ^[4]

Lucy Coffey, 108 and the nation’s oldest living female military veteran, was honored in Washington DC July 25, 2014 along with other members of the "Austin Honor Flight" at Reagan National Airport and was welcomed to the White House by President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden. John Mulrey, a Vietnam veteran, accompanied his aunt from San Antonio, Texas, on the (Honor Flight) trip to Washington, D.C., with his wife JoAnn.

SSG Lucinda "Lucy" F. Coffey passed away March 19, 2015 while residing in San Antonio, Bexar, Texas, USA. She was buried at the New South Park Cemetery, in Martinsville, Morgan County Indiana, USA Plot: Greenlawn section. ^[5]

Note: Lucinda lived to be a centenarian. She was 108 years old when she died.

Sources

1. ↑ 1930 US Census Name: Lucy F Coffey Birth Year: abt 1907 Gender: Female Race: White Birthplace: Indiana
2. ↑ FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/K8LW-5YN
3. ↑ The Battle of Luzon, fought 9 January – 15 August 1945, was a land battle of the Pacific Theater of Operations of World War II by the Allied forces of the U.S., its colony the Philippines, and allies against forces of the Empire of Japan. Wikipedia
4. ↑ U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
5. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #132676565

• 1930 United States Federal Census Name: Lucy F Coffey [Lucy F Caffey] Birth Year: abt 1907 Gender: Female Race: White Birthplace: Indiana Marital Status: Single Relation to Head of House: Roomer Home in 1930: Dallas, Dallas, Texas. Father's Birthplace: Indiana Mother's Birthplace: Ohio.

• "United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946," index, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/K8LW-5YN : accessed 20 March 2015), Lucy F Coffey, enlisted 03 Apr 1943, Dallas, Texas, United States; citing "Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946," database, The National Archives: Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (http://aad.archives.gov : National Archives and Records Administration, 2002); NARA NAID 126323, National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C

• U.S., Obituary Collection, 1930-2015 Birth, Marriage & Death Name Lucy Coffey Death 19 03 2015 Residence San Antonio, Florida, USA Gender Female Obituary Date 29 04 2015

See Also:

• http://www.stripes.com/wac-legacy-honored-as-108-year-old-vet-lucy-coffey-fulfills-her-dream-1.295422 . Article By Meredith Tibbetts Stars and Stripes Published: August 1, 2014

• http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/20/lucy-coffey-dead-dies_n_6911702.html. Artice in the Huffington Post, 03/20/2015 02:39 pm ET | Updated May 20, 2015

• http://www.cbsnews.com/news/lucy-coffey-nations-oldest-female-military-veteran-dies-at-108/ Articel from CBS/AP March 20, 2015, 9:57 AM

• http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2015/03/19/lucy-coffey-oldest-american-woman-veteran-dies/25062081/ Melanie Eversley, USA TODAY 4:27 p.m. EDT March 20, 2015