Anna Mae Eichelberger lived in a farm in Arkansas, she had three older brothers and a younger brother. Anna Mae's mother died when she was eight years old. Her younger brother was six at the time and she became his mother.
During the depression, Anna Mae decided to go to California by train. When she and the other passengers stopped in Albuquerque overnight, the driver loaded up new passengers and went to California without them! She settled in Albuquerque.
Anna Mae Eichelberger did her part in the war effort by being a part of the USO housing effort.
When World War II broke out she was 35 years old. She was married with a brother and brother-in-law in the war. Anna Mae Eichelberger did her part in the war effort by being a part of the USO housing effort. She worked as a volunteer helping soldiers find temporary housing for themselves and their families. The USO is like the Red Cross. People in the USO had to try to make the soldiers and their families feel comfortable. Sometimes Mrs. Eichelberger and some of the others entertained the troops. They would take them on picnics and entertain them there.
When Anna Mae could not find a home for the soldiers and their families, she would clean out her basement and let them stay there. She lent one couple household items, even though others told her not to, because, they said, she would never get them back. She got everything back. During the war, the USO was located on Central, near Broadway.
Mrs. Eichelberger also volunteered at the Veterans' Hospital. At the Veterans' Hospital, she would pass out the medicine to all the vets. In order to work at a Veterans' Hospital she had to take a course. Every week, they also had to take trays around to every vet that needed things such as toothpaste and shaving cream.
From a small child in Arkansas, to a woman living in Albuquerque helping soldiers from World War II, Anna Mae Eichelberger did a lot for many people, including herself. Anna Mae not only changed her life, but she changed a lot of others' lives too.
- Cinnamon Evans, Danielle Hamilton, Angela Harvey