An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home : Media : News : News Article View
NEWS | Aug. 21, 2020

Former Army Nurse, 100, Recalls World War II Experiences

By Defense.gov Terri Moon Cronk

WASHINGTON -- World War II was raging in 1944. American troops were instrumental in the effort to take back France, including the beach landings in Normandy that caught the Germans off guard. American forces took possession of Rome, and a Soviet counterattack pushed Germany back into Poland.

In the Pacific, Japan had gained more Chinese territory, but the communists' presence limited Japan's success. The Allies fought back by taking Saipan and invading the Philippines.

Meanwhile, in Philadelphia, 24-year-old nurse Regina Benson and three of her nursing school classmates joined the Army Nurse Corps right after graduation to serve their country. They were assigned overseas and remained lifelong friends.

Benson's three brothers were also serving, so for her, joining the Army as a patriotic duty was not unusual.

"She was kind of fearless," her daughter, Phyllis Benson, said in a recent interview.

Benson, of McLean, Virginia, is now 100 years old. She visited the Pentagon recently and was interviewed about her Army Nurse Corps service in Japan, Hawaii and Okinawa, from September 1944 until April 1946.

While in Hawaii, 2nd Lt. Benson met her future husband, Army 1st Lt. William Benson, who was a supply officer and a company commander. He stayed in the Army Reserve, reaching the rank of lieutenant colonel. When Regina left the Army in 1946, she became a civilian surgical nurse, her daughter said.

Benson had some harrowing experiences during her wartime service in the Pacific.

"We were on a ship going across the Pacific, and we hit a bad storm," Benson said. "So, the captain decided we would go down with the ship, and of course, everybody got on their knees and prayed and promised God many things. Then all of a sudden, the ship calmed down, and we went through the eye of the storm and everybody went back to what they were doing."

After the Japanese announced their surrender on Aug. 15, 1945, and formally signed an agreement Sept. 2, American service members were welcomed into the homes of Japanese, Benson said. "We ate dinner with them, talked to them and stayed in some of the Japanese homes," she said, adding that the Americans shared their rations with the Japanese.

She remembers well, the day the Japanese surrendered. "I was delighted, but the Japanese [troops] in the hills didn't know that World War II was over, and they came down [from the hills] shooting at us," she said. She said she jumped for joy when the war was over so she could return home, get married and work as a civilian nurse.

Benson believes "the United States is the greatest country in the world because of its freedoms and because people can carry out their dreams." If she could speak to younger generations today, she said she would tell them "to love their country, and remember the price [service members] paid for your freedom. Remain true to your country. We can pursue our dreams and hopes."

Regina Benson worked 12-hour shifts in Army hospitals in the Pacific; on wards and in operating rooms. She said the most important thing she did during the war was "to give comfort to those troops who were dying."

According to Benson, the most rewarding part of her Army nursing career was to be able to tell the mother of a young service member that their son did not die alone, because she was there with them.
 

CONNECT WITH USINDOPACOM
Facebook

Like Us
X
363,083
Follow Us

ENGAGE & CONNECT MORE WITH PACOM

                                                 

IN THE USINDOPACOM NEWS
U.S., India launch Exercise Tiger TRIUMPH 2024
Courtesy Photo
March 21, 2024 - Indian and U.S. combined armed forces began Exercise Tiger TRIUMPH 2024 with the arrival of amphibious transport dock ship USS Somerset (LPD 25), March 18 and an opening ceremony March 19.This is the third time U.S. and...

USACE: Ensuring Safety Every Step of the Way
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Japan Engineer District (USACE JED) is the premier Department of Defense (DoD) military construction (MILCON) agent in the Pacific, providing facilities-related design and construction work in Japan for all military services and agencies. With over 60 years of experience in designing and constructing facilities in Japan, JED possesses the experience in Japanese standards and specifications, regulations, construction practices, maintenance requirements, and culture needed to ensure facilities are built with the utmost safety and professionalism. Photo by Charles Maib.
March 21, 2024 - The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers - Japan Engineer District (USACE JED) is the premier Department of Defense (DoD) military construction (MILCON) agent in the Pacific, providing facilities-related design and construction work...

THAAD Battery in Guam Successfully Completes Table VIII Evaluation
A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense launcher used by E-3 Air Defense Artillery THAAD Battery as part of their Table VIII certification in Dededo, Guam, March 13, 2024. The THAAD battery, equipped with a state-of-the-art missile defense system, is tasked with defending Guam against ballistic missile threats. (U.S. Army Photo by Maj. Trevor Wild)
March 21, 2024 - In a testament to readiness and operational excellence, Task Force Talon's E-3 ADA THAAD Battery conducted a Table VIII evaluation for the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system stationed in Guam, March 11-15,...

Army CID Expands its Jurisdiction in Cobra Gold 2024, Major Exercise in Pacific Region
Special Agent Chow meets with Chonburi Provincial Police to discuss tactics, techniques, and procedures during Cobra Gold 2024.
March 20, 2024 - Supervisory Special Agent Erin Chow, Department of the Army Criminal Investigation, Far East Field Office became the first Army CID special agent to participate in the multinational Indo-Pacific military exercise Cobra Gold,...

U.S. Army Engineers Complete Wet Gap Crossing with the ROK Army
ROK Soldiers assigned to the 5th Corps Engineering Brigade River Crossing Company and Soldiers assigned to the 11th Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division Sustainment Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division ROK/U.S. Combined Division, complete construction on a joint bridge, during a combined wet gap crossing exercise, near the Imjin River in Paju-si, Gyeonggi-do from March 11-20, 2024. ROK and U.S. Army units utilized aviation, armor, air defense, chemical, biological and defense capabilities to train the security and protection of the site during the exercise that was designed to verify interoperability through the construction of a joint pontoon bridge. (U.S. Army photo by Pak, Chin-U)
March 20, 2024 - The 11th Engineer Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division Sustainment Brigade, 2nd Infantry-ROK/U.S. Combined Division joins forces with the ROK army 5th Engineer Brigade to participate in a combined wet gap crossing training...