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The Army Nurse You Should Meet Today

Jewish Women in the military memory board.
Courtesy of The National Museum of American Jewish Military History

“A Boston girl, one of the shortest girls in the unit. Maybe 4-foot-10. When we came ashore at Normandy, she almost drowned because she couldn't touch bottom.”

An hour before she was to die, Army nurse Lt. Frances Slanger sat before a fire and wrote a letter to the military newspaper Stars and Stripes.

“With the slow feeding of wood and finally coal, a roaring fire is started. I couldn't help thinking how similar to a human being a fire is. If it is not allowed to run down too low, and if there is a spark of life left in it, it can be nursed back. So can a human being. It is slow. It is gradual. It is done all the time in these field hospitals and other hospitals in the ETO (European Theatre of Operations).”

Read what Frances Slanger thought about the American soldier. It will make your Veterans Day. There are more stories about women veterans on the Jewish Women's Archive website. If you have a story of a Jewish woman who served in the Armed Forces, share it with us in the comment field below.

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At JWA, we preserve the voices of Jewish women and gender-expansive people past and present, share them freely with millions online, and empower a new generation of Jewish feminists to lead with courage, creativity, and conviction. 

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How to cite this page

Benson, Stephen. "The Army Nurse You Should Meet Today." 12 November 2012. Jewish Women's Archive. (Viewed on June 15, 2026) <https://qa.jwa.org/blog/army-nurse-you-should-meet-today>.