[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 111 (Tuesday, July 27, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6296-S6297]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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                   TRIBUTE TO ROSE (PENNY) PENN ROSS

 Mr. BOND. Mr. President, today I wish to thank Rose Penn Ross 
for her dedicated service to our Nation during World War II. Mrs. Ross, 
or Penny as she is called, is a retired school teacher who selflessly 
answered the patriotic

[[Page S6297]]

call to duty when she enlisted in the Women Airforce Service Pilots--
WASP--organization during World War II.
  Like many of her counterparts in the ``Greatest Generation,'' Penny 
wanted to help the war effort. As a licensed pilot, Penny wanted to 
serve by flying planes, and joined 25,000 women in applying for the 
WASP program. After completing exactly the same rigorous military 
flight training as her male counterparts, Penny became one of only 
1,100 women to receive her Silver Wings.
  While the WASP organization was not recognized as part of the 
military until 1977, Penny and the other women serving in WASP played a 
critical role in the war effort. Within the United States, Penny 
brought planes from factories to bases, flew experimental aircraft, and 
towed targets for the gunnery school vital tasks that also freed up 
male pilots for combat service and duties.
  Prior to the war, Penny graduated from the University of Wisconsin 
with a bachelor's degree in business and earned her master's in 
education from the University of Missouri. She married her beloved 
Vernon M. Ross and settled in Missouri. Vernon and Penny started a 
family, which grew to include four children: Robert, Barbara, David, 
and Richard; eight grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren. After 
WASP was disbanded in 1944, Penny began her teaching career. She taught 
secondary school for 30 years in Harrisburg, Glasgow, and Moberly, 
molding young minds in the subjects of business, math, and French.
  In addition to her legacy of family and her love of learning, Penny 
has created a legacy of service to our Nation.
  Penny, her fellow female pilots, and the countless other men and 
women who served their nation during World War II made possible the 
conquering of some of freedom's worst foes of the 20th century: Hitler, 
Mussolini, and Hirohito. Thanks to the struggles and sacrifices of all 
of our troops from here at home, to Normandy, Tunisia, Midway, and 
Guadalcanal, those of us in subsequent generations have lived in 
relative peace and prosperity.
  It is only fitting that earlier this year Americans like Penny were 
recognized for their contributions to the freedom we enjoy today. On 
March 10, 2010, Mrs. Ross attended the WASP Congressional Gold Medal 
Ceremony in the U.S. Capitol. With her family by her side, she was 
presented with a bronze medal replica of the Gold Medal. Today, Penny 
resides in the Veterans Home-Mexico, MO.
  Penny, we are grateful for your service to your family, your 
community, and your country. Your story is an inspiration to people in 
all generations today who want to make a difference.

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