Wednesday, September 5, 2001

Local resident tells fascinating war stories

By JANET McGREGOR
snippets@bellsouth.net

Helen Denton has led an action-packed life and does not seem to have any plans to stop the action any time in the near future.

Her early years may have been fairly normal, growing up in a small town in South Dakota. However, once she left state as a recruit in the Women's Army Corp, life took an interesting turn and has continued to make interesting turns.

he finished college in 1940 only to find that most of the eligible men in the area had joined the military to fight in World War II. One of her girlfriends decided the best way to find someone to date would be to join the military.

Denton said absolutely not, but she did agree to accompany her friend to take the test. Once there, she was talked into taking the test rather than waiting.

"I passed," laughs Denton. "She [her friend] didn't."

Denton found herself with only a few days to get to Des Moines after joining. She scrambled, using the family's gas rations to get her clothes and make it on time.

She was originally was assigned to be a recruiter, working in a Post Office to try and talk other women into joining. In 1944 the war escalated and, as a result of the need for more men to fight, many jobs typically held by men opened. Helen was subsequently reassigned to be the Secretary to the Post Commandant at a post in Omaha.

One day she delivered the mail to the commandant. While there, he mentioned that he had the difficult task of deciding which of the "girls" to pick for an overseas assignment. Denton said, "I'll take it," and managed to cut all the other girls out of the job before they had a choice.

She had time for a short weekend at home with her family before leaving. Being the only one on the train as she traveled home, she spent time talking to the conductor, letting him know that she had to be back on the train early Monday morning so she wouldn't miss shipping out.

She overslept Monday morning, missing the train. She and her brother decided they might be able to beat the train to the next station so they took off. They arrived only to find out the train had just pulled out, so they opted to try the next station.

When it happened again, she told her brother to pull onto the tracks in front of the train, which they had finally pulled ahead of. Luckily the train stopped for the young girl standing on the tracks waving her hands. They pulled her up, baggage and all onto the train, telling here they had been watching her all the way and had decided to stop for her at the next city.

There were 30 in her group stationed in Ft. Oglethorpe for top-secret training. From Georgia the women traveled to New York for a trip on the Queen Mary to England.

The 30 young ladies were assigned six to a cabin, sleeping on bunk beds. Twice a day an MP would knock on the door and escort them to eat, making a path through the thousands of men on the ship. They ate breakfast, then returned to their cabin until the 4 p.m. knock for dinner and 30-40 minutes of fresh air. The trip took five days.

Denton tells many interesting tales regarding her overseas assignments, some of which will have to wait until she finishes the book she is working on.

Once in England, Denton began her job in earnest, typing battle plans and other top secret materials in a small room guarded by an MP. At the end of each day an MP would come in, take the carbon paper and ribbon and burn it.

Only then could Denton leave for the day. Regarding the other women doing the same job, she says, "None of us asked what the other was doing."

Weekends were fun times for the women. On one weekend trip Denton took a tour of Windsor Castle, only to find that the king and queen (now the Queen Mother) were in residence, closing a portion of the castle to the public. While there, the queen and young Elizabeth (the current queen) walked into a gallery Helen was touring. She laughs, noting she wasn't sure what she should do when the queen approached her.

When Princess Margaret asked her what she did in the war effort, Denton said she was assigned to General Eisenhower, prompting the queen to ask if she knew Elizabeth, as "she's just been assigned to be a driver."

While on a tour of 10 Downing Street, Winston Churchill walked into the room as she and others were having tea. He walked in, picked up a cup and walked out. Denton said she wrote home and told her mother she had tea with Churchill.

One day, as she finished typing, she was asked to take the sheets to General Eisenhower. He asked her if she was aware of what she had been typing. She told him she thought it was the plans for the invasion, which he confirmed.

He then told her that he had a weekend pass for her so she could spend time with her brother as he was with Patton's group, letting her know he would not be in the first group. She said, "It was nice of him to think of me. It was the only time I personally talked to him, although I saw him many times."

On the day of the invasion, she drew kitchen duty. All night she had noticed planes flying over but had no idea of the actual date of the invasion. She remembers listening to Churchill on the radio announcing the invasion had started.

"I'd typed up how many ship, men and countries would be involved," she said. "It was mind-boggling. I was sick to my stomach, knowing what was going to happen."

Denton was in London during the bombing of that city. She spent a considerable amount of time three stories underground in a bomb shelter. She said the first floor was for people off the street, the second was for the English and the third for Americans.

The military decided it would be better if the women were in France, so they all packed up and boarded a ship to cross the Channel. They traveled at night, like the troops, for safety reasons.

She recounts how the ship stopped in the dark, out in the water, when it got close to the shore. She looked in vain for a way to debark, only to be told she had to go over the side. "I don't know how to swim," she replied.

Ultimately, she was able to go over the side turning around backward to climb down a rope ladder into the water. They waded from water up to their hips to the shore, only to find that they would have to wait until daylight for someone to pick them up.

The soaking wet group of 30 women was finally transported to a nearby base, but other arrangements had to made to pick up their luggage. While standing in line to get a bit to eat, she said mentioned she would be so glad to get her clothes. A soldier heard her plea and volunteered to chauffeur her to the beach. "And that is how I met my future husband," Helen said.

Calling him a true "Georgia gentleman," she shared how their time together during the weeks in France gave them time to get to know each other. Considering her accommodations, a pup tent with a latrine "down at the corner" it must have been an interesting courtship.

Finally, the war ended and Denton went home to South Dakota, while her future husband, Noel, went home to Georgia where he took a job with Southern Bell. The pair married in April, 1946, moving permanently to Georgia.

The end of the war and marriage didn't slow Helen down. She has always been active in the community. She joined the Forest Park Women's Club and, after adopting a son in 1954, became active in school-related activities. She worked as a secretary at St. John's where her son attended, then took a job as a secretary with Delta.

In 1982 tragedy struck and she lost her son in an accident. That same year she retired and her husband died. "I had to start my life over again," she said.

For the past 20 years she has been active in numerous volunteer arenas. She is the only woman in the entire state who is a commander of a VFW post. As Commander of Post 3650 Riverdale, she has seen the group attain 100 percent membership.

She gives engaging talks to groups regarding her life experiences. She particularly enjoys talking to students.

She is on the executive board of the Delta Pioneers, the board of trustees for the Delta Museum and is a volunteer with the Red Cross. In June of this year Denton was honored for her outstanding volunteer work with the Metropolitan Atlanta Chapter of the American Red Cross.

"For the past 18 years, Denton has been a valuable asset in getting Delta Air Lines, one of Atlanta's biggest corporations, to donate much needed blood four times a year," according to a Red Cross spokesperson.

Denton became a volunteer in 1982 after retiring and now helps recruit, train and assign 250 people each year to work blood drives in Atlanta.

Denton has also received the Clara Barton Award of Meritorious Service, the United Way Community Service award and the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change Inc. award.

Her husband had enjoyed the hobby of raising collies, although she quips, "I was the sanitary engineer." After his death, she was asked to judge shows and help in other areas, which she did for 16-17 years. She currently serves on the board of the Collie Club of American Foundation, Inc. a research group.

In her "spare" time, Denton is working on writing her life story. Her intentions are to share some of her philosophies and what she has learned with future generations, primarily her nieces and nephews.

"When you lose your whole family, you can either go up or down," she says. "I vowed I would try to make something of my life. And that's what I'm trying to do."

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