Joan Little's sister now a movie star

Many of us fondly remember Joan Little's sister Lydia Davis. Lydia has been to Raleigh numerous times. At the time of the family gathering at the funeral home that many of us attended, Lydia was the sister who led the family in singing a Polish hymn in honor of Joan. (Lydia is now 80, and when she attended Catholic elementary school in Saginaw, all classes were still conducted in Polish. That practice had disappeared by the time Joan entered school, so Lydia was the sibling most fluent in Polish.)

Lydia has an interesting connection with the Korean War, and as a result Lydia has been featured in a documentary on that war. From an article describing Lydia's role in the movie,

A member of the Korean War Veterans Association Chapter 251 and the American Legion, Davis was invited to record her memories in the Delta College documentary, “The Korean War: Voices from the 38th Parallel.”

The article is entitled Korean War veteran shares a woman's perspective of the 'Forgotten War' in Delta College documentary and appears at the MLive - All Michigan website.

Here's an excerpt  that shows what a true groundbreaker Lydia was in terms of women's roles in the military ...


“At that time, you could not join the service even when you were 18 without your parent’s written permission," Davis said. "I wanted not to just be a plain secretary; I wanted to be a private secretary, to do something much higher.” 

She worked at a dress shop downtown in the meantime, ready for her chance to enlist. That day was July 31, 1951, about a month after her 18th birthday.

“I had to cry for a month before my father would sign the papers because back then, ladies in the service were not considered ladies,” Davis said.

Her recruiter had no qualms about women enlisting, and Davis was accepted into the U.S. Air Force and sent on her first military adventures: basic training and cryptography school.

‘I had no idea what I would end up doing’

The Air Force became a separate institution from the U.S. Army when the National Security Act of 1947 became law. It created the Department of the Air Force and identified a secretary to lead the organization, which was around four years old when Davis joined.

“They were looking for people, especially ladies, to join," she said. "The Korean War was on, and they needed women to take over certain positions, certain jobs so the boys could go to Korea and fight.”

With no idea what she would end up doing within the Air Force, Davis took aptitude tests during basic training and was sent for further instruction to Cheyenne, Wyo. When she graduated top of her class, Davis was made corporal and given a new assignment.

“They said they were sending me to cryptography school, which was in Belleville, Ill.," Davis said. They told me it was code, but I had no idea how you did the code or what you did. No idea whatsoever.”