Letter From Eileen

Dear Vintage Reader,

I hope you enjoy this issue – our staff had a lot of fun preparing it. The mysterious world of spies and subterfuge is exciting! In these pages, you will find articles about a mistress of disguise, the James Bond movie franchise, and the fantastic Spy Museum in Washington, D.C. (my favorite item there is the lipstick gun). I wanted to be a spy in grade school and planned to use my name spelled backward as my handle. Neelie Nayr is Eileen Ryan’s spy name.

eileen.bradshaw@LIFEseniorservices.org

(918) 664-9000 www.LIFEseniorservices.org

I was fascinated to learn about the Ritchie Boys and think you may be also. The Ritchie Boys weren’t actually all boys – there were 200 Women’s Army Corps members who were included in this group of intelligence soldiers who trained at the secret Camp Ritchie in Maryland during World War II. This group of military intelligence members represented 70 different nationalities, and most were sent to this training because of their fluency in German, Polish, French, Italian, or other languages needed by the U.S. Army during the war.

What is most moving to me is that about 2,000 of these soldiers were Jewish refugees from Germany and Austria. These refugees were valued not only for their language skills but also for their understanding of the German mentality and behavior during the war. They were trained in intelligence, counterintelligence, psychological warfare, and interrogation.

Many of these individuals had fled the Nazis as children. I am awed by the courage it must have required to re-engage with the enemy that had driven them out of their homes. I am inspired by their story and glad their bravery is becoming more widely known.

I hope you are enjoying this first full month of spring. Perhaps we will run into each other in a downtown tunnel!

Best, Neelie

Vol. 37, No. 10

EILEEN BRADSHAW

President & CEO of LIFE Senior Services, LIFE PACE & Vintage Housing

KELLY KIRCHHOFF

Senior Director of Communications

DEE DUREN

Managing Editor dduren@LIFEseniorservices.org

BERNIE DORNBLASER

Advertising Director bdornblaser@LIFEseniorservices.org

LEAH WEIGLE

Graphic Designer

PAULA BROWN

Assistant Editor pbrown@LIFEseniorservices.org

CAROL CARTER

Copy Editor

DICK MCCANDLESS

ESTEBAN VALENCIA

Community Distribution

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© LIFE’s Vintage Newsmagazine and LIFE Senior Services, Inc., 2023. All rights reserved. Reproduction without consent of the publisher is prohibited. Volume 37, Issue 10, April 2023

LIFE’s Vintage Newsmagazine (ISSN 2168-8494) (USPS 18320) is published monthly by LIFE Senior Services, 5950 E. 31st St., Tulsa, OK 74135. Periodicals postage paid at Tulsa, OK.