[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 8 (Tuesday, January 14, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H185-H186]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  HONORING THE LIFE OF FRANCES SARGENT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) for 5 minutes.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of 
Frances Rohrer Sargent, a courageous woman who selflessly helped defend 
our country during World War II. Being a member of the renowned Women 
Airforce Service Pilots or WASP, Frances pushed beyond the boundaries 
that limited opportunities at that time for women of her generation.
  The Women Airforce Service Pilots were the first women to fly 
military aircraft, flying noncombat operations between the years 1942 
and 1944.
  These pioneers paved the way for women pilots to fly nearly every 
type of military aircraft from F/A-18 to the

[[Page H186]]

space shuttle today. My daughter-in-law, Lindsay, flew combat missions 
over Iraq and Afghanistan for the marines, but she would not have been 
able to do so without the women who came before her, Frances and all 
the other members of WASP.
  Frances had a fulfilled life. She began flying at the age of 22 in 
Atlanta and would come to be one of only 1,704 women who were accepted 
to the prestigious Women Airforce Service Pilots, WASP, out of more 
than 25,000 women who had applied for the program.
  Frances and other female pilots from our south Florida community, 
including Helen Wyatt Snapp, Ruth Schafer Fleisher, Shirley Kruse, and 
Bee Haydu, flew more than 60 million miles between '42 and '44.
  As the author of the legislation awarding WASP the Congressional Gold 
Medal in the year 2009, I had the privilege to present the award to 
Frances Sargent for her patriotic service. The Congressional Gold 
Medal, as we know, is the highest civilian award in the United States; 
and it was presented to these women who were the first females to ever 
fly military aircraft. Their missions were mainly composed of 
safeguarding the U.S. coastal line so that male pilots could take on 
combat roles abroad.
  Quite often Frances' life and that of her colleagues were on the line 
with constant attacks from enemy forces. The service of the WASPs to 
the U.S. military greatly contributed to the triumph and success of the 
U.S. and our allies in the defeat of the Axis powers during World War 
II.
  Frances' deep passion for flying is what led her to pursue flight and 
become part of the prestigious WASPs. She never sought to break the 
barriers for women, but through her service she demonstrated her 
excellent skills that made her as well qualified a pilot as any of the 
male pilots in the military.
  With her success, and that of her many other female pilots, more 
opportunities then became available for women in all fields.
  After her retirement from WASP, Frances continued her love of flying 
by passing on her skills that she had gained. She became a professor at 
my alma mater, Miami-Dade College, where she took charge of developing 
the aviation program.
  South Florida has been blessed to have had true heroines like Frances 
Rohrer Sargent, and we honor the service of her and her fellow south 
Florida WASP patriots: Helen Wyatt Snapp, Ruth Schafer Fleisher, 
Shirley Kruse, and Bee Haydu.
  Aim high. Fly, fight, and win.

                          ____________________