In 1942, Charity Adams Earley (1918- 2002) became the first
African American woman to receive a commission in what became
the Women's Army Corps (WACs). She rose through the ranks to
command the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion in Europe,
the only unit of African American women to serve overseas in
World War II. Upon leaving the service in 1948, she was the
WAC's highest- ranking African American officer, a lieutenant
colonel. Raised in Columbia, South Carolina, Earley moved to
Ohio to attend Wilberforce University and later, the Ohio State
University. She married Stanley Earley, Jr., M.D. in 1949 and
they later moved to Dayton. She became active in civic affairs,
including serving on the Sinclair Community College Board of Trustees.
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