Dorothy was a prolific correspondent during World War II, keeping in touch with boys from the neighborhood. One of her strong recollections was receiving a letter from a soldier in England who was about to embark for France. He wrote that they were forced to burn all their letters from home, so they couldn’t be used for propaganda or extortion if they were found on the battlefield.

Of course the letters she sent to servicemen are lost, but she kept all that she received. Copyright law prevents their publication on the web, but letters from these servicemen have been scanned for posterity. They will be donated to the Center for American War Letters Archives at Chapman University.

William August Betke

According to his obituary, he was born March 27, 1922, in The Bronx, New York. He graduated from City College of New York, enlisted in the U.S. army and served as an air cadet and flight instructor from 1943 to 1945. Dot received letters from from December 17, 1942 through December 20, 1944.

James Fleming

Jimmy Fleming served in the 1284th Engineer battalion and sent to Dot letters from Spokane, the Marianas, and Okinawa from November 2, 1942 to December 25, 1944.