BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Doughboy Foundation - ECPv6.16.2//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://staging.doughboy.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Doughboy Foundation REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20230312T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20231105T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20240310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20241103T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20241026T143000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20241026T173000 DTSTAMP:20260604T040135 CREATED:20241015T102023Z LAST-MODIFIED:20241021T213830Z UID:10000036-1729953000-1729963800@staging.doughboy.org SUMMARY:Grave Marker Ceremony for Grace Banker Chief Operator\, Hello Girls DESCRIPTION:On Saturday\, October 26\, family\, friends and supporters of Grace Banker Paddock will gather to dedicate a new marker at her gravesite in Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn\, NY.  This marker will commemorate her pioneering military service in World War I as the leader of the first unit of U.S. women soldiers\, the telephone operators commonly known as “Hello Girls.” \n \nRSVP to this Event\n\n \n NameThis field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.Your Name(Required)\n \n \n \n First\n \n \n \n \n Last\n \n \n Your Email(Required)\n \n Who's Attending?(Required)-- Select --Just meMe + one guestMe + two guestsMe + three guestsMe + four guestsMe + five guestsGuest #1 Name(Required)\n \n \n \n First\n \n \n \n \n Last\n \n \n Guest #1 Email(Required)\n \n Guest #2 Name(Required)\n \n \n \n First\n \n \n \n \n Last\n \n \n Guest #2 Email(Required)\n \n Guest #3 Name(Required)\n \n \n \n First\n \n \n \n \n Last\n \n \n Guest #3 Email(Required)\n \n Guest #4 Name(Required)\n \n \n \n First\n \n \n \n \n Last\n \n \n Guest #4 Email(Required)\n \n Guest #5 Name(Required)\n \n \n \n First\n \n \n \n \n Last\n \n \n Guest #5 Email(Required)\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \nThe event will begin with a procession from the Main Gate at Green-Wood Cemetery to Grace’s grave.  At the gravesite\, there will be a ceremony to dedicate the marker\, including the unveiling of the stone\, remarks from speakers\, military honors\, and a wreath laying.  Following the ceremony\, there will be a light reception at the Green-wood Modern Chapel. \nA reception will be held following the ceremony in the Green-Wood Cemetery Chapel sponsored by the Wounded Warrior Project \nThe tentative timing of the event is from approximately 2:30pm – 5:30pm (including the procession and reception). \nThe Hello Girls\n \nThe Hello Girls were sworn into the U.S. Army Signal Corps as telephone switchboard operators in World War I playing a vital role in the ending of the war. This group of 223 women were the first female soldiers in the U.S. and served with valor operating the telephone systems for the U.S. Army. General John Pershing remarked that their service helped shorten the war by a year. \nWhen these brave women returned home\, they were told they had not served in the Army\, despite wearing uniforms\, taking Army oaths\, and previously being told\, “You’re in the Army now.” \nThe Hello Girls fought for more than 60 years to get their veterans status\, with more than 50 bills being introduced into Congress that did not pass. Finally\, in 1977\, bipartisan legislation passed and was signed into law by President Jimmy Carter. However\, most of the Hello Girls did not live to see the day of this victory; and those who did weren’t given veteran benefits or back paychecks. \nGrace Banker\n \nGraceD. Banker (October 25\, 1892 – December 17\, 1960) served during World War I (1917–1918) as chief operator of mobile for the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) in the U.S. Army Signal Corps. She led thirty-three women telephone operators known popularly as Hello Girls. They were deployed to France to operate telephone switch boards at the war front in Paris\, and at Chaumont\, Haute-Marne. They also operated the telephone switch boards at First Army headquarters at Ligny-en-Barrois\, about 5 miles (8.0 km) to the south of Saint-Mihiel\, and later during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. After her return to civilian life\, Banker and her team members were treated as citizen volunteers and initially not given recognition as members of the military. In 1919\, Banker was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for her services with the First Army headquarters during the St. Mihiel and Meuse-Argonne Offensives. \n\n\nAmerica’s Forgotten Veterans: The Hello Girls of World War I Are Still Being Left Behind \n\n\n \n\n\nFor 60 years the Hello Girls fought for veterans status \n\n \nKey Participants:   \n\n\n\nCarolyn Timbie (Grace Banker’s granddaughter)\nOther Banker descendants \nOther Hello Girl descendants\nNY State Dept of Veteran Services Representative\nNYC Dept of Veteran Services Representative\nDan Dayton\, Doughboy Foundation\nLiving Historians/Re-Enactors\n\n\n\nThe ceremony is free and open to the public. \nSchedule of EventsGreeting by MC – Linda JantzenPresentation of ColorsNational AnthemWelcome to Green-Wood CemeteryRemarks by Carolyn TimbieRemarks by Army Representative – See aboveMusical Performance\nRemarks by VA Representative \nRemarks by Doughboy Fondation Rep – Dan DaytonRemarks by Representative GoldmanUnveiling of Marker by Carolyn Timbie + other descendantsAward of Victory Medal – recognition!Presentation of WreathsBenedictionRifle saluteTapsYour support for the Doughboy Foundation will help fund our mission in perpetuity\, inspiring future generations of visitors and forever honoring our World War I veterans and all U.S. servicemen and women. Donate today → URL:https://staging.doughboy.org/event/grave-marker-ceremony-for-grace-banker-chief-operator-hello-girls/ LOCATION:Green-Wood Cemetery\, 500 25th St\, Brooklyn\, NY\, 11232 ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://staging.doughboy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/GraceBanker.jpg ORGANIZER;CN="Doughboy Foundation":MAILTO:(202) 280-1521 END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR