In God We Trust
This page of the Korean War Educator honors the female Navy veterans who lost their lives while serving in the military during the Korean War.
Ball, LTJG Dorothy Sue - Born March 18, 1927 in Buncombe County, North Carolina, she was a daughter of Jesse H. Ball (1882-1964) and Lula Jones Ball (1889-1943. Her siblings were Hermie Lou (1909-1935), Ruth S. (1911-1937), Mrs. Charlie E. (Virgie Ball) King (1912-2005), Carl Jesse (1915-1975), Weaver Jones (1917-2000), Marion Garrett (1922-1978) and Doyle Jay Ball (1925-1987). An officer in the Navy Nurse's Corps, Lieutenant Ball lost her life in the following airplane crash.
United Airlines Flight 615 was a US transcontinental east-west airline service from Boston to Hartford, Cleveland, Chicago, Oakland and San Francisco. On August 24, 1951, the Douglas DC-6B with registration N37550 operating the service, crashed on approach to Oakland, causing the death of all 44 passengers and six crew members on board.
The flight departed Chicago at 10:59 p.m. CST en route to Oakland. At around 4:16 a.m., the plane was approaching Oakland. At this time, the pilot, Marion W. Hedden of Los Altos, had talked with the control tower of the Civil Aeronautics Administration at the airport preparing for his landing, and had mentioned no trouble. At 4:25 a.m. Flight 615 was cleared for the straight-in approach into Oakland. This approach clearance was the last radio transmission with the flight. The plane crashed into mountainous terrain 15 miles (24 km) southeast of Oakland, careening into Tolman Peak and over its knoll, scattering on the down slope and into Dry Gulch Canyon below in a fiery explosion. All 50 persons on board perished.
After an investigation, it was determined that the pilot ignored the prescribed instrument landing procedures. The pilot instead relied on visual reference, using the copilot's automatic direction finder (ADF). The ADF threw the plane three miles (4.8 km) off course and below the prescribed altitude of 3,500 feet (1,100 m).
Beste, ENS Eleanor Clara - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Eleanor died in the crash. Eleanor Clara Beste was born February 20, 1925 in Freeport, Minnesota, daughter of Henry F. Beste (1883-1941) and Regina G. Haselkamp Beste (1886-1968). She graduated from St. Cloud, Minnesota Hospital School of Nursing in 1946. She was assistant head nurse before joining the Navy Nurse Corps in January 1948. She was assigned to the naval hospital at Bremerton, Washington before receiving transfer orders to Japan in September 1950. Her siblings were: Ulric Conrad Beste (1914 - 1989), Emmeline Mary Beste (1916 - 1968), Regina T Beste (1918 - 1990), Mary Helen Beste (1920 - 2000), Julitta Magdalen Beste (1922 - 1997), Francis Bernard Beste (1927 - 1931), Al Beste, and Clara Beste Klobe.
Boatman, ENS Marie Margaret - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Marie was one of the fatalities. Marie was born March 8, 1925 in Abilene, Texas, daughter of Rev. Clarence Otto Boatman (1896-1969) and Ruby Ellen Clark Boatman (1894-1942). Reverend Boatman was pastor at Government Hill Methodist Church. Marie attended Southwest University, Georgetown for pre-med and then graduated from Harris Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Ft. Worth. She was employed at Harris until she was commissioned in the Navy Nurse Corps on March 10, 1948. She was assigned to the Naval Hospital in Long Beach, California, from that date until January 5, 1950. On January 11, 1950 she reported to the US Naval Hospital in Bremerton, Washington, where she remained until receiving overseas orders for Yokosuka, Japan on September 11, 1950. She was survived by her father, step-mother Ethel May Hickman Boatman (1895-1977), and two brothers John Harvey Boatman (1924-1990), a World War II veteran, and David Boatman. Dave (also a World War II veteran) was in the Navy in the Korean War at that time and came home to attend his sister's funeral. Marie Boatman is buried in Ft. Sam Houston National Cemetery.
Clarke, LTJG Jeanne Elizabeth - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Jeanne was a fatality in the crash. Born May 12, 1918 in Oregon, Jeanne was the daughter of George Henry Clarke (1878-1939) and Eleanor Jane Clarke (1882-1932). Her hometown was listed as Portland, Oregon. Her siblings were Margaret C. Clarke (a WAC in World War II), George T. Clarke (also a World War II veteran), and John H. Clarke, all of Multnomah County, Oregon.
Jeanne graduated from Washington High School and then graduated from St. Joseph's School of Nursing in Vancouver, Washington in 1943. She enlisted in the US Navy Medical Corps on December 27, 1943. She was commissioned in the Navy in 1944 and served until 1946. In November 1949 she volunteered for active duty again. She had assignments at Puget Sound, Washington and San Diego, Long Beach and Oceanside, all in California.
An article in the St. Joseph Hospital Chronicles of May 14, 1943 told about her graduation as a nurse: "Nineteen Nurses received diplomas. Their services are greatly needed at this time both in the hospitals and in the armed forces. They are Misses: Sue K. Aklin, Marie M. Allaire, Barbara C. Argianas, Isabelle M. Berning, Mary K. Butler, Jeanne E. Clarke, Marian Elliott, Ann C. Gomulkiewicz, Corrine T. Hanson, Georgean D. Haskin, Caryl E. Hewitt, Mary E. Klein, Anne M. Lulay, Ellen Lerfold, Marianne Mc Cullough, Martha E. Partanen, Joyce B. Reed, Rufina C. Parish, Helen E. Steyaert."
Eldridge, ENS Jane Louise - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Jane died in the crash. The daughter of Harold and Lillian Eldridge of Detroit, Michigan, Jane entered Providence Hospital School in 1943 when she joined the U.S. Cadet Nurses Corps. She remained for a year as a nurse at Providence Hospital after graduation and then entered the U.S. Navy Nurses Corps in September 1947. She reported to the US Naval Hospital in Bremerton, Washington on December 10, 1947, and Jane was still stationed there when she came home on leave September 2, 1950. Four days later her leave was cancelled and she returned to Bremerton, where orders transferring her to the Naval Hospital at Yokosuka, Japan awaited her. On the trip to Japan the plane stopped three times for fuel. After the final stop, the plane crashed after leaving Kwajalein Island. See also: The Michigan News, November 1950, pg. 148. Her hometown was listed as Detroit, Michigan. She was 27 years old.
An article about Jane's death appeared in The Capital Times newspaper in Madison, Wisconsin (September 21, 1950), stating: "The fiancee of Lt (jg) Arpad Masley, Madison Navy doctor, and 25 other persons were killed Tuesday in the crash of a Navy transport in the Pacific Ocean near Kwajalein. Lieutenant Masley, the son of Mr. and Mrs. A.L. Masley, 3626 Spring Ctr, was to have been married to Ensign Jane L. Eldridge, daughter of Mrs. Lillian Eldridge, Detroit, Michigan. The elder Masley is director of physical education for men at the university. Mrs. Masley said her son and Miss Eldridge had been engaged since June and that they planned to be married on their next trip home. Lieutenant Masley is in Korea, and Miss Eldridge had been ordered recently to report for duty in Japan. Mrs. Eldridge explained that her daughter was home early this month on a 30-day leave, but that she had been home only six days when ordered to report in Bremerton, Washington, in preparation for going to Japan. A 1947 graduate of the university medical school, Lieutenant Masley began his navy service in September 1949. He and Miss Eldridge met at the Bremerton Naval Hospital while both were stationed there."
Elmer, Jeanette W. - On a flight to Maryland, two engines on C-121J Super Constellation 131639 went out over Prince Edward Island on January 17, 1955, and crashed into the sea 70 miles southwest of Stephenville, Newfoundland in bad weather. Six crew members and seven passengers perished, but the body of only one was located. Jeanette was a fatality on this plane. Born in Syracuse, New York in 1933, she was a daughter of Henry Elmer (1898-1977) and Sarah A. Stage Elmer (1897-1983). Her siblings were Howard S. Elmer (1923-1969), World War II fatality Edward Charles Elmer (1925-1945), Mrs. Charles (Beulah R. Elmer) Edem, and Mrs. Chester Paul (Dorothy Ann Elmer) Breon (1934-2013). Jeanette was the only female on the fatal flight of C-121J Super Constellation 131639.
Esposito, ENS Constance Rita "Connie" - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Connie was one of the fatalities. Daughter of Frank and Maria Carmella "Millie" Parrenzi Esposito, Brockway, Pennsylvania, Connie was born on September 07, 1923. She graduated from Brockway High School in June 1941, and was a 1945 graduate of the Indiana, Pennsylvania Hospital School of Nursing. After graduation she was employed at DuBois, Pennsylvania Catholic Hospital before joining the Navy in 1948. She had assignments at Bethesda, Maryland and San Diego, California. She is buried in St. Tobias Cemetery, Brockway. Her siblings were: Gerald Esposito (died age 5), Theresa Mae Esposito Prosper, Yolanda Geraldine Esposito (1925-2013), Anna Marie Esposito Benson, John Henry Esposito, Richard James Esposito, Josephine Pauline Esposito Bruzga, Patricia Jean (Patti) Esposito, and Francis Joseph (Cheech) Esposito (1930-2013). Connie was engaged to be married to a fiancé in California. Just prior to Memorial Day 2015, the bridge spanning Toby Creek on Route 28 near Brockway was officially named the "Ens. USN Connie Rita Esposito Memorial Bridge". Several hundred people attended the ceremony, organized by Parson-Marnati Post 95 of the American Legion in Brockway.
Giroux, Lt. JG Alice Stella - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Alice was among the fatalities. Born January 5, 1910, she was the daughter of Euclid T. Giroux (1881-1954) and Celia Langlois Giroux (1881-1927). Her hometown was listed as Seattle, Washington. Her siblings were: Lionel P. Giroux (1905-1992), Geneive Giroux (1907-1907), Desniega Giroux (Mrs. Ed Lick - b. 1911), Olene Giroux (Mrs. Robert Joseph Fletcher - 1913-1991)and Lillian Giroux (Wilson - born 1923). Alice was a nurse in World War II and was in the US Naval Reserve when she was sent to Korea to take care of the wounded. She died in the plane crash en route. She graduated from St. Mary's Hospital School of Nursing in Rochester, Minnesota in 1932. She had varied experiences as a nurse, including special duty at Saint Mary's a year at the American Hospital in Paris, and civil service at the Gorgas Hospital, Ancon, Canal Zone (1940-1942). She joined the Navy Nurse Corps, reporting for duty at the US Naval Hospital in Long Beach on November 18, 1944. After serving as a nurse at the Naval Hospital in Norfolk, Virginia, she was released to inactive duty on June 22, 1946. She was a naval reserve nurse at the US Naval Hospital in Long Beach for over six months. In April 1947 she was at Building #102, Birmingham General Hospital, Van Muys, California. By October 1947 she had a new address in Pasadena. After a period of inactive duty from 1946 to 1949, she went back to active duty on January 6, 1949 at the Naval Hospital in Corona, California. She was transferred to the US Naval Hospital in San Diego, California on October 6, 1949.
Saint Mary's Alumnae Quarterly had an article sent in by Alice from the Canal Zone on May 17, 1942. She wrote: "I am on night duty at present, on a white men's ward, patients with pneumonia, malaria, etc. and some surgical patients... Misses McCue ('27) and Beavan ('30) are also on the night shift, so we often have pep fests over the supper hour. Miss McCue leaves for vacation shortly, and may stop in Rochester. I spent thirty days of my vacation in Guatemala and the remaining thirty here and in the interior of Panama. I greatly enjoyed Guatemala city, also Antigua, a city of ruins, destroyed by earthquakes of 1773 and eruptions of a nearby volcano. Two other nurses joined me on a trip to Chichicastenango, about 170 miles from in the highlands and away from Guatemala city. There we met the famous priest Reverend Rossbach, who has lived with the Mayan Indians, educating and teaching Christianity to them for the past thirty-seven years. He also is a noted jade collector. He actually did all this work on his own and has a display of evacuations made in a museum connected with the church. In this village we saw processions of pagan Indians worshipping idols, climbing mountains and offering their prayers. Father Rossbach says he has converted many of them. He allows them to enter his church, but without their idols. He goes about it gradually and much remains to be done. All in all it was a most enjoyable trip. I did get some grand pictures, and wish I had my color movie camera with me. Please give my best wishes to the Sisters."
Goodwin, Lt. JG Calla Virginia - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Calla was a crash fatality. Born on April 25, 1922 in Tyrrell County, North Carolina, her hometown was listed as Raleigh, North Carolina. She was the daughter of Frank O. Goodwin Sr. (1895-1976) and Madelyn B. Goodwin (1900-1976), both of whom are buried in Concord, Contra Costa County, California. She was also survived by a brother, Frank O. Goodwin Jr., who is now deceased. Calla was a 1940 graduate of Needham B. Broughton High School in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she was a member of Latin Club, Glee Club, Typing Club, a staff reporter for the school radio, member of Girls' Athletic Association (GAA), German Club, and the RHS Glee Club, and participated in school operettas and the State Music Contest.
After high school graduation she received her nursing degree from Rex Hospital School of Nursing in Raleigh in 1943. She joined the Navy Nurse Corps on January 6, 1944, and reported for duty at NNH in Ports, Virginia on February 16, 1944. She left there on May 15, 1945 and on May 20 reported for duty at the Naval Hospital in Bainbridge. On July 23, 1945, she began duty at the Naval Hospital in Charleston, South Carolina, and remained there until May 1948. On May 13, 1948, she reported to the Naval Dispensary at the Charleston Naval Shipyard Naval Base in South Carolina, where she remained until July 6, 1949. On August 5, 1949, she reported to duty at the US Naval Hospital in Long Beach, California, where she remained until going on duty at the US Naval Hospital, SMR, Oceanside, California, on February 18, 1950. She remained there until receiving overseas orders to the US Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, Japan.
Heege, LTJG Constance Adair - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Constance was one of the fatalities. Constance was born July 2, 1918, daughter of George Frederick Heege (1891-1983) and Clara K. Wegener Heege (1892-1982) of Kirkwood, MO. From suburban Kirkwood, Missouri, she graduated from the University of Missouri in 1941. She graduated from St. Louis University School of Nursing in 1947 and taught school for two years before joining the nurses' cadet training corps at St. Mary's Hospital, St. Louis, MO. She was formerly a staff nurse and clinical instructor at St. Louis University Hospital before taking her oath of office as Ltjg NCR on December 3, 1948. She was stationed at the US Naval Hospital in Long Beach, California, from January 5, 1949 until February 17, 1950. The next day she went on duty at the US Naval Hospital, SMR, Oceanside, California, and remained there until receiving overseas orders to the Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, Japan. In addition to her parents she was survived by sisters Shirley (Ohlson) and Mourine (Marco) and a brother George Frederick Heege III (1930-2001). She is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, Kirkwood, Missouri.
Kennedy, Margaret Grace - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Margaret was one of the fatalities. "First from Webster to be killed in the Korean War is a woman, Lt. (jg) Margaret Kennedy, 27, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Edward J. Kennedy, May Street. Word of the death of the Webster Naval nurse was contained in a telegram received yesterday by the parents, states that she was one of 26 who were killed in the crash of a Navy Transport plane Sept. 9, 1950, off Kwajalein, the Pacific's worst military air accident. Not only is Lt. Kennedy the first woman to give her life, but the first woman in any war to be killed, and who claimed Webster for her home. News of the death of their daughter was received by her parents in the following telegram: "It is with deep regret that I officially report the death of your daughter, Lt. (jg) Margaret Grace Kennedy, USNR, on 9 September, as a result of a plane crash which occurred in Kwajalein, in the Marshall Islands. When further details concerning recovery of remains are received, you will be informed promptly. Your daughter dies while serving her country and in the performance of her duty. Admiral John W. Roper, Chief of Naval Personnel." Miss Kennedy served as a naval nurse in World War II, and at the end of the war, entered Denver University, graduating last year. She recently re-entered the Naval Service, and was stationed at San Diego. She volunteered for overseas duty and was on her way to the theater of war when the plane disaster occurred. She was born in Webster, attended school here and graduated from Bartlett High School. She entered Peter Bent Brigham Hospital and graduated from the training school, later entering the service in World War II. Surviving are her parents, a sister, Helen Kennedy in California, and a brother, Thomas of Webster, who served in World War II and was a member of L Company, which was Federalized from here." [Source: Webster (Massachusetts) Times, September 21, 1950]
According to a 1951 issue of the American Journal of Nursing, Lieutenant Kennedy graduated from Peter Brigham Hospital in Boston in 1944 and was a general duty nurse for a few months before joining the NNC in 1944. She had a period of duty at Portsmouth, Virginia, Chelsea, Massachusetts, Newport, Rhode Island, and at Long Beach and San Diego in California.
Ledbetter, Wilma - On a foggy August 25, 1950, the hospital ship USS Benevolence (AH-13) was rammed by the commercial freighter, SS Mary Luckenbach about four miles west of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. Less than an hour later, the Benevolence had capsized with only a part of its hull and its big red cross showing above water. Twenty-three persons on the ship were dead and hundreds more were struggling to stay afloat and alive in freezing cold water. One Navy nurse, Lt. Wilma Ledbetter, lost her life in the tragedy. For more information about the USS Benevolence, click here.
Wilma Ledbetter was born April 27, 1912 in Chillicothe, Texas. Her father, William L. "Bud" Ledbetter moved to Chillicothe with his brothers George Mitchell, Henry, Hiram and Dick Ledbetter in the early 1900s. Bud later became mayor of Chillicothe for a number of years and also served several years as a city councilman. He was the last surviving member of the original Chillicothe Volunteer Fire Department that was organized in the early 1900s. Bud also had a feed and seed store for years and was manager of the Kell Mills for years.
There were five girls in the Ledbetter family. The eldest three, Lucretia (1907-1996), Edith (1909-1982), and Wilma (1912-1950), were the daughters of William Luther "Bud" Ledbetter (died 1978) and Christina Hale Ledbetter. Christina Ledbetter died of influenza in 1918. The youngest two Ledbetter sisters, Jacqueline "Jackie" (1923-2000) and Emily, were the daughters of William and Emma Jane Powell Ledbetter (died 1961). Wilma's aunt and uncle were Davidson Victor York and Nell Pitcomb (Powell) York of Ada, Texas.
Although Emma Ledbetter was not the birth mother of Wilma, family members told the KWE that she loved Wilma as her own daughter and Wilma's death took a terrible toll on Emma. Wilma's sisters each married: Lucretia to a Wickliffe, Edith to Thurman McPherson, Jacqueline (Jackie) to Bennie Emile Reynolds, and Emily to a Shoemaker. Jacqueline had two children, Jerry William Reynolds (1947-2011) and Jane Reynolds Howard of Collinsville, Oklahoma.
According to her sister Emily, Wilma graduated from high school in Chillicothe circa 1929. Naval records show that she attended Texas State College for Women, Denton, Texas, from 1929 to 1930. She then attended Central State Teachers College, Edmond, Oklahoma in 1933 while thinking about becoming a teacher. After deciding to become a nurse, she received three years of nurses training (1936 to 1939) at the Northwest Texas Hospital School of Nursing in Amarillo, Texas. The school closed in 1985. (See also: American Journal of Nursing, Vol. 50, October 1950, page 680.)
Prior to becoming a Navy Nurse, Wilma Ledbetter was employed at Northwest Texas Hospital, Amarillo (general duties) from 1939 to 1940. She then worked at Charity Hospital, New Orleans, Louisiana, where she not only had general duties from 1940 to 1942, but also took nine hours of nurses education (1942) at Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA. She then had general duties at Brackenridge Hospital, Austin, Texas, in 1942. She reported for a physical examination to join the Navy Nurse Corps on March 4, 1943 in Norman, Oklahoma, where it was found that Wilma was physically qualified for appointment in the USNR Nurse Corps.
Naval records show that she proceeded to active duty as Reserve Nurse, USN, on July 6, 1943. Her service number was 219499. Ensign Ledbetter had duty at the Naval Hospital, San Diego, California, before receiving orders to Hawaii. She sailed from the USA on the USS Antigua on September 9, 1944, arriving at Pearl Harbor on September 15, 1944. She served as a nurse at the U.S. Naval Hospital, Aiea Heights, Hawaii, and then at the Naval Air Station, Kahului, Maui, Hawaii, until November 8, 1945. According to her income tax report for that year, her total taxable pay in 1945 was $2,137.25. Her military exclusion was $1,500.00.
She returned to the States on November 13, 1945 on the S.S. Monterey, and then traveled from San Francisco, California to the U.S. Naval Hospital in New Orleans, LA. She was released to inactive status effective May 17, 1946, but proceeded to active duty as Reserve Nurse USN again on January 14, 1947. She was assigned to a duty station at the US Naval Hospital, Houston, Texas. Records show that she was transferred from there to the dispensary at the Naval Ammunition Depot in Hawthorne, Nevada. She received permission to travel from her duty station at the US Naval Hospital, Houston, Texas, to Hawthorne, Nevada on 14 November 1947. The orders gave her permission to travel there via an automobile owned by Lt. Marie Edith Charron, NC, USN, and described the auto as a 1947 Kaiser Special, 4-door. In 1948 she received a permanent appointment to the rank of Lieutenant, NC, USN.
Wilma was also a nurse in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but the dates of her service there have not yet been determined. Lieutenant Ledbetter rejoined the active Navy Nurse Corps when the Korean War broke out and was assigned to the USS Benevolence.
Liljegreen, Lt. JG Mary Eleanor (USN) - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Mary was one of the fatalities. Mary Eleanor Liljegreen was born on August 31, 1925, one of three children born to Carl Joseph Liljegreen (1892-1976) and Agnes Elizabeth Wyse Liljegreen (1890-1968). A 1942 graduate of West Seattle High School and Seattle University, she took her nurse's training at Providence Hospital School of Nursing, graduating in 1946. After graduation she was employed at Providence Hospital until signing up for the Navy on July 1, 1947. She reported for duty at the Naval Hospital in Oakland, California, on September 2, 1947, and remained there until December 5, 1949. On December 28, 1949, she reported for duty at the US Naval Hospital in Bremerton, where she remained until receiving overseas orders for Yokosuka Hospital in Japan on September 11, 1950. She was the sister of former World War II POW LeRoy Randolph "Lee" Liljegreen (1916-1997), who was the husband of nurse Miriam Jeannette Smith Liljegreen (1921-2012), and sister of Mrs. Timothy Hugh Harn Jr. (Elizabeth Louise "Betty") (1923-2001), who was also a nurse and graduate of Providence Hospital School of Nursing. Mary Eleanor's hometown was listed as Seattle, Washington.
Rundell, ENS Edna June - On September 19, 1950, an aircraft carrying 11 nurses refueled for the third time at Kwajalein before taking off for Japan. Within 90 seconds the plane had crashed, killing all 26 onboard. Edna was one of the fatalities. Born August 1, 1926 on a farm near Stafford, Kansas, Ensign Rundell was the daughter of Lee Harold Rundell (1891-1949) and Gladys June Vincent Rundell (1895-1983) of Stafford. Her siblings were sisters Anna Lee Rundell Lee (1917-1989), Evelyn Rundell (Gilmer) (1922-1981), Dorothy M. Rundell Hathaway (1930-1996), and Helen Marie Lofland (1916-2001), and brothers Harold and Jay, both World War II veterans. Her grandmother, who was living at the time, was Mrs. J.W. Vincent of Stafford.
Edna June attended Liberty Grade School and then graduated from the Stafford High School with the Class of 1944. In June of the same year she entered cadet nurses training at the St. Elizabeth Hospital in Hutchinson, graduating in 1947. She worked as a nurse in the hospital at Wellington, Kansas, and while there she enlisted as an Ensign in the U.S. Navy. She reported for duty at the UN Naval Hospital in Bremerton, Washington, on December 30, 1948 and remained there until receiving overseas orders to the US Naval Hospital in Yokosuka, Japan on September 11, 1950.
She was a member of the Methodist church in Stafford. Her obituary stated: "She was a loveable and pleasant girl, very sincere in her work of helping others. She made many friends in her work and varied interests in life. Edna was fond of music and the piano was her constant companion. She will be sadly missed by all who knew her, especially her family."
At the time of her death, Edna's sisters, Helen Lofland and Dorothy Hathaway, were residing in California, and their mother had gone to California to visit them and see her daughter Edna June before she left for overseas duty. Mrs. Rundell was still in California when she got the news of her daughter's death.
Photographs and news clippings relating to Edna June Rundell are located in another section of this page.