4 Quotes by Kathryn J. Atwood

During the conflict that was placed before them, they not only gained the gratitude of many in their own generation but they proved, for the first time on a global scale, the enormous value of a woman’s contribution, paving the way for future generations of women to do the same.

The Second World War created the need for a new generation of female heroes. Where could these women look for role models? The women of the previous war had by this time been largely forgotten. Although efforts had been made during the 1920s to memorialize the war's heroes, both men and women, with monuments, books, and films, most Europeans, impatient to forget the war, also forgot its heroes.But now the memory of their courage was needed and eagerly recalled...

Everyone loves a story where good triumphs over evil, and from our standpoint in history, WWII indeed seems like a satisfying film in which the good guys will win if we just watch to the end. But that real-life happy ending was not a given. The horror of fascism might have covered the entire globe if millions of people had not stood in its way and said no.

Modest almost to a man—or a woman—WWII vets did not seem to understand, as the years passed, why so many young people were interested in hearing their stories and meeting someone who had fought against fascism. Most of them would say, like SOE agent Pearl Witherington, “I don’t consider that I did anything extraordinary. I did it because I wanted to, because it was useful, and because it had to be done.