The Gold Star Wives of America was formed before the end of World War II to provide support for the spouses and children of those who lost their lives while serving in the Armed Forces of the United States. The first meeting was on April 5, 1945, when four young widows met in Marie Jordan's apartment on West 20th Street in New York City. One week later, President Franklin D. Roosevelt died. Shortly thereafter, Eleanor Roosevelt, the widow of the Commander-in-Chief, joined the organization. Mrs. Roosevelt was most helpful in the early days of the organization. She attended meetings, wrote about the organization in her My Day column, entertained children of Gold Star Wives at a picnic at her home in Hyde Park, served on the first board of directors, and was one of the original 15 signers when the organization was chartered as a non-profit organization in the State of New York in December 1945. The group holds a congressional charter under Title 36 of the United States Code under Public Law 96-497.
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Famous quotes containing the words gold, star, wives and/or america:
“The fifth day of Christmas,
My true love sent to me
Five gold rings,”
—Unknown. The Twelve Days of Christmas (l. 19–21)
“I have drunk ale from the Country of the Young
And weep because I know all things now:
I have been a hazel-tree, and they hung
The Pilot Star and the Crooked Plough
Among my leaves in times out of mind....”
—William Butler Yeats (1865–1939)
“Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives, be subject to your husbands as you are to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife just as Christ is the head of the church, the body of which he is the Savior. Just as the church is subject to Christ, so also wives ought to be, in everything, to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her...”
—Bible: New Testament, Ephesians 5:21-25.
“I will keep America moving forward, always forward—for a better America, for an endless enduring dream and a thousand points of light.”
—George Bush (b. 1924)