Barbara and Stephen had no way of knowing it, but four days later, on May 7, 1945, German generals would sign an unconditional surrender at Allied headquarters in Rheims, Germany. The war in Europe would be ended.
It would take another thirty-two years, however, until November 23, 1977, before Congress would approve a bill granting military status to the Women's Airforce Service Pilots who had served, and some of whom had given their lives, in World War II.
But it would not be until May 25, 2009, some 65 years after their service, that the WASPS would be awarded their much-deserved Congressional Gold Medal, one of the nation's highest civilian honors. It would honor the fewer than 300 living former WASPS, all in their eighties or older. The bill passed the Senate and as this book is being written awaited a vote by the House of Representatives.
For more information about the Women's Airforce Service Pilots see Wings Across America and its web site at www.wingsacrossamerica.org.
The author is a former Chicago Tribune reporter and feature writer who is a freelance writer of fiction, nonfiction, and screenplays for adults, preteens, and teenagers. His pen name, Madeline Colman, comes from his favorite romantic movie, "The Prisoner of Zenda," made in 1937 starring Ronald Colman and Madeleine Carroll.