MARY REDLIN

By Jessica McCain and Sarah Weber

On the morning of May 7th, 2001, students entered their English classroom with a bit of anticipation and unease. Several elderly people from the so-called "Greatest Generation" were waiting patiently for the long awaited World War II interviews.  Every student nervously listened for their name to be paired with their interviewee.  After the uncomfortable introduction, the initial stress was lifted and the interviews were underway.

Mary Ellen Graham was born on May 4, 1928 on a small farm in Minnesota.  She was raised in a family of six consisting of two older brothers, one younger brother and two loving parents.  Life, at first, seemed easy for the Graham family, even through the horribly troublesome times of the Depression. They owned a very productive farm from which they harvested numerous fruits, such as apples and plums, plus many vegetables.  They also had many farm animals, which enabled them to have a ready supply of fresh milk, eggs, and meat.  However, life on a farm required hard work to be taken on by Mary and her brothers because her father had heart trouble after a bout with the flu in 1918  during World War I.

Richard, the oldest brother, affectionately known as Dick, responsibly handled most of the workload while Hugh, the second oldest who is now deceased, Mary, third born, and Robert (Bob), the youngest, carried out their farm duties as well.  The siblings were each one year apart, yet they got along surprisingly well.  Life on the farm was laid-back and enjoyable with the knowledge that they were sufficiently supplied in major necessities for their survival.

World War II began when Mary Graham was only eleven years old. Although Mary did not fully understand the war situation at the time, she recalls certain memories from that era.  During World War II times, the government would ration nearly everything, from food to gasoline, in order to better stabilize the nation's economy.  However, farmers were guaranteed unlimited gasoline from the government in order to ensure that their land would continue to be successful in food production.  This stability in farmers was seen by those less fortunate and was coveted.  Mary's mother was always very generous to those in need, inviting them in and feeding them a healthy meal before sending them on their way.  However, most of those whom Mary's mother helped were humbled and would often offer a helping hand in exchange for their meal.  All in all, farmers were better off during war times because they were able to support their families through hard work and dedication to their farms.

Once Mary reached the age of fourteen, her brother Dick enlisted for the war at only seventeen. Dick joined the Marine Corps and trained at West Point, after which he was sent to work with the crew of an aircraft carrier. Here he guarded whiskey, took part in abandoning ship routines, and helped build a new, smaller Independence after the original was used for target practice for the Atom Bomb and was sunk. 

Hugh enlisted in the war when Mary was sixteen and fully enjoying her adolescent years.  She was enrolled in town school, otherwise known as High School, and was in a graduating class of only eight.  Mary attended many school dances, which were held every Friday night.  Although she was greatly delighted in her High School years, she still worried about her brothers in the war and wrote to them each and every week.  Hugh was in the Army and was stationed in Washington, DC as a typist, therefore never faced combat because of his advanced typing skills.  He was also never forced to march in war because of a past fracture to his foot bone that had caused the bone to fully dissolve. 

Bob narrowly escaped the war because it ended before he had reached the age of seventeen in 1945.  However, he did enlist even though he had developed a hernia and was doubtful of his acceptance because of his disability.  He later fought in the Korean conflict.

Once the war had ended, much of the burden was lifted from citizen's shoulders although many thought the war to be full of propaganda and false glories.  Yet, people still were glad to be over with the struggles of World War II.  After Mary had turned eighteen years of age, she left home to find adventure in a different way of life.  She headed to New York City.  There she attended Queens College where she majored in Home Economics and breezed through her classes because of her natural ability for learning.  After college, Mary became a radio operator, earning $110 each month. 

It was on one of her work encounters that she first met her husband, John A. Redlin.  They met at Northwest Airline where they both worked.  He asked her out to coffee.  Mary accepted the invitation but later stated that the coffee was horrible.  However, John appealed to Mary because of his piloting and civilized manner.  She fell in love and married John in 1949.

John and Mary Redlin moved seventeen times in only nine years because of the constant traveling conditions inherent in working with the airlines.  They finally settled in and began to raise a family which grew to accommodate six children: four daughters and two sons.  As their children grew, they each chose a different lifestyle.  Four of her children moved to Washington state to pursue their careers, and Mary followed, settling in Pullman which she grew to love, and where she lives today.