{"id":7898,"date":"2025-03-28T18:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-28T18:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=7898"},"modified":"2025-03-28T18:30:00","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T18:30:00","slug":"a-century-of-strength-with-dorothy-rudd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=7898","title":{"rendered":"A century of strength with Dorothy Rudd"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"tni-source-date\"><strong>Originally published:<\/strong> 2025-03-28T18:30:00+00:00. Historical source article: benefits, rules, amounts and deadlines may have changed. Check the official source for current information.<\/p>\n<p>Dorothy \u201cPat\u201d Rudd, a 103-year-old World War II Navy Veteran, has lived a life of service, pioneering the way for women in the military. As one of the first 200 members of the <a href=\"https:\/\/foundationforwomenwarriors.org\/waves\/\" rel=\"noopener\">Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES)<\/a> deployed overseas, Rudd helped shape history during a time when women\u2019s roles in the armed forces were still being defined.<\/p>\n<p>Born in Peoria, Illinois, Rudd enlisted in 1942, following in the footsteps of her brother. Her service took her to Hawaii, where she worked as an educator, teaching literacy skills to fellow service members. Additionally, Rudd played a vital role in the war effort by helping in hospitals and caring for injured soldiers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to do my part. My brother joined and I felt inspired to follow the same path. I knew I could make a difference,\u201d she shared.<\/p>\n<p>Among her most emotional memories of service was helping sailors communicate with their families while they were away at sea. \u201cI remember taking the time to sit with them and assist in writing letters home. For some, it was their sole connection to their loved ones. It meant the world to them, and it meant everything to me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Three years after the end of World War II in 1948, President Harry S. Truman signed the Women\u2019s Armed Services Integration Act into law, allowing women to serve as full permanent members of all military branches. The act solidified the role of female service members like Rudd, paving the way for future generations.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u201cIt was the best decision I ever made.\u201d<\/h2>\n<p>After the war, Rudd settled in Orlando, Florida, with her husband. For many years she was unaware of the health care services available to her through VA.<\/p>\n<p>When Rudd started to feel unwell, her daughter urged her to visit Orlando VA. \u201cI took my bag of medicine to VA and the doctor took one look and said, \u2018While you\u2019re here, let\u2019s run some tests.\u2019 When I came back two weeks later, he threw everything away except my thyroid medicine. From that moment I knew I\u2019d be with VA for life,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>Now a resident of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.va.gov\/geriatrics\/pages\/va_community_living_centers.asp\" rel=\"noopener\">Community Living Center (CLC)<\/a> at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.va.gov\/orlando-health-care\" rel=\"noopener\">Orlando VA Healthcare System<\/a>, Rudd speaks highly of the care she receives. \u201cI couldn\u2019t ask for a better place to be. VA has been excellent to me, very helpful in every way. It was the best decision I ever made,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n<p>Joelle Robles, social worker, has had the privilege of working closely with Rudd and witnessing her strength and resilience. \u201cMs. Rudd is an incredible woman with a remarkable story. Her journey reminds us how far women in the military have come and she continues to inspire everyone she meets. It\u2019s an honor to be part of her journey.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr>\n<p class=\"tni-attribution\">Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/news.va.gov\/139059\/a-century-of-strength-with-dorothy-rudd\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs<\/a>. Its Veterans is an independent publication and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. government.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dorothy \u201cPat\u201d Rudd, 103, World War II Navy Veteran, has lived a life of service, pioneering the way for women in the military.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":339,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7898","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-veterans-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>A century of strength with Dorothy Rudd - Its Veterans<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Dorothy \u201cPat\u201d Rudd, 103, World War II Navy Veteran, has lived a life of service, pioneering the way for women in the military.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/itsveterans.com\/?p=7898\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A century of strength with Dorothy Rudd - 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