Recently, members took a tour of the Rosie the Riveter 💪 WWII National Home Front Museum in Richmond led by Rosie docent and OLLI member Simone Adair.
What an inspiring tribute to the thousands of American women who built the ships and machinery necessary to fight and win WWII and save the world from fascism!
The tour was capped by a talk from a real Rosie — "Rosie" Jeanne Gibson — who spoke of her time as a welder on destroyers, and her life of adventure afterward.
"Rosie" Jeanne Gibson speaking in front of a rapt audience
Also, a shoutout to Henry J. Kaiser for understanding that the best and only way to build a ship a day was to invest in the morale and physical well-being of his work force, leading him to provide on-site 24/7 childcare (with hot meals, art, music, beds) and health care (the precursor to Kaiser Permanente) for just pennies per paycheck. (Less than $10 in today's dollars.)
A copy of the iconic Rosie poster on display at the museum