Part of the 3rd Grade East She Persisted  Series

Introduction

When Maggie Gee was a kid she was told she was telling tall-tales about flying. When World War II broke out she was told she could not do what she wanted, and she wanted to fly. Can you imagine?

Early Years

In the 1920s in the Bay Area, a little girl was born named Maggie Gee. She watched planes take off from Oakland airport and even saw Amelia Earhart. Maggie told stories about the future, and how she would fly one day. People said that her stories were not true.

Life as an Adult

In 1941 World War II started. Her mother wanted her to make ships with her, but she wanted to fly instead. She and two of her friends bought a car for $25 and went to Texas. Maggie and her friends joined the WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilots). 25,000 women tried to get into the WASP, only 1,830 got in and 38 died.

In 1944 the WASP was disbanded and it would be another 30 years before women were allowed in the cockpit of a U.S. military plane again. In 1950 she joined the army running service clubs in Germany during the height of the Cold War.

Accomplishments

Maggie’s accomplishments were big. Flying in World War ll and joining the WASP was one accomplishment. After she was in the army she became a physicist working for the Lawrence Livermore Laboratory. Of the thousand pilots that earned wings in WASP only a couple hundred are still alive today.

Cclusionon

Maggie Gee was held back on what she wanted to do, flying. She persisted by joining flight school and flying in World War ll. Her story lives on and she has inspired lots of people to fly.

“Some stories are true and some are not. This is a true story”
-Maggie Gee