Hello Girl Renee Messelin to be honored in Chicago July 16

It is time for an update!

Two years ago, we discovered that an African American woman served as a Signal Corps Telephone Operator. Renee Messelin – born Ellarane Caldwell – turned out to be the only daughter of a prominent African American couple in Chicago. [See previous article here: https://doughboy.org/renee-messelin-out-of-the-shadows-after-a-century/.]

At that time, we knew that Renee had passed as white to serve her country.

We knew that she had died in Florida in 1977.

We had not yet learned about her final resting place. In fact, looking for her final resting place was what helped uncover her heritage.

So much has been accomplished in the last two years.

President Biden signed legislation in December 2024 that granted the “Hello Girls” the Congressional Gold Medal.

With the completion of this six-year endeavor, many people involved have chosen to see the CGM as a launching pad for further recognition efforts. Led by three Hello Girls descendants, the Hello Girls Military and Honors Remembrance Project (M-HARP) was created. The mission of the project is to tell the story of this extraordinary group of soldiers. Several workstreams are pursued by M-HARP, including gravesite recognition, descendent location and outreach, ceremonies, and support to students.

The project work includes identifying the final resting place of the Hello Girls and ensuring that their gravesites identify them as the Veterans they are. Since most of the women literally went to their graves without that designation, they were not entitled to a military funeral or marker.

A total of 280 women are currently considered to be “Hello Girls”. Of these, 223 women deployed to France over the course of 1918. Many operators stayed in France after the November 1918 Armistice. They were often at Tours with the Service of Supply (SOS), Paris with the Peace Conference and Brest for the redeployment of the doughboys. Others were sent on to Coblenz with the Third Army during the occupation. Another 57 women were on the transport ship and ready to deploy, when the Armistice was signed. While these women never served in the war zone, they are counted as Veterans as well. They applied, were screened and accepted, were trained and swore the Oath.

Out of the 280 women, the final resting place has been found for approximately 200 women.

• About 140 women are confirmed to be buried in private cemeteries in graves with a private headstone. These women are entitled to a Veterans Administration medallion to be placed on their headstone.
• Another 24 women are known to be buried in private cemeteries; however, we do not know what – if any – headstone marks their graves.
• A handful of women are known to have been cremated. In some cases, the disposition of their ashes is not known. In other cases, we know that their ashes were scattered.
• At least two women donated their bodies to science.
• About 10 women are known to be unmarked graves.
• We have not found where about 75 of the women are buried.
  • About 50 of these, we know where and when they died. We do not know where they were buried or if they were cremated.
  • Another 25 or so women have “disappeared” from the historical records.
• A dozen Hello Girls are known to be buried in National Cemeteries.
  • Those who died before 1979 are buried with their husbands, who had also served. Their headstones often only had their first name and the epithet, “His wife”. The National Cemetery Administration has updated at least two of these.
  • Four women who lived to receive their discharges chose to be buried in National Cemeteries. They all have a traditional VA marker.

Clearly, much work remains. In some cases, the death certificates need to be ordered from the various state vital records agencies. In cases where we know that someone is buried in an unmarked grave, we search for their descendants. As much as the team wishes to ensure that the women are recognized and honored, we likewise wish to allow their families to have a voice in that recognition. Also, many cemeteries will not place a grave marker without a descendant’s request. The M-HARP team meets regularly to discuss the challenges involved in the research for the grave-marking efforts.

Descendant outreach is important to support the marking of the gravesites, and also to ensure that families are aware of the various activities. Some families are unaware of the service and sacrifice of their relative (grandmother or great-aunt). Other families have heard the stories and have treasured artifacts, including uniform items and personal writings.

One M-HARP effort centers on the holidays. Catherine Bourgin, the granddaughter of Edmee LaRue, has built a partnership with Wreaths Across America, spearheading a WAA celebration at Fort Lincoln Cemetery in Maryland in 2025. (See more here: https://go.wreathsacrossamerica.org/HelloGirls) For 2026, Catherine is working with the cemeteries where other Hello Girls are interred, expanding the reach of the effort into those cemeteries.

Another workstream builds on the national interest in the Hello Girls musical. High schools have embraced the story. Descendents often meet with the students and other groups delivering productions of “The Hello Girls, A New American Musical,” by Paul Mills and Cara Reichel. Actors portraying Grace Banker are inspired meeting with Carolyn Timbie, her granddaughter, and learning more about the real women they portray.

Finally, grave side dedication ceremonies are an integral part of our story telling. And a fitting continuation of the story of Renee Messelin.

To determine Renee Messelin’s final resting place, Caprice Green, an Army Veteran and the 3^rd District VSO for the American Legion, State of Georgia, contacted the funeral home mentioned in Renee’s obituary. The Tampa-based funeral home shared that Renee had been cremated. Her church confirmed with Ms. Green that their records indicated that they had released her cremains into the bay.

With this information and the appropriate form signed by Ms. Green (in lieu of descendants), the National Cemetery Administration provided a memorial marker for Renee Messelin. The cenotaph was installed in the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery.

The Doughboy Foundation and MHARP continue to work with the Department of Veterans Affairs, National Cemetery Administration, to ensure Hello Girls’ gravesites are properly marked to recognize their military service. Next month, on 16 July 2026, a ceremony will be held at the cemetery in honor of Renee Messelin. Her cenotaph will serve as a lasting tribute to her service, sacrifice and pioneering contributions.

Diane Boettcher is a retired U.S. Navy Captain, who has pursued her own family tree for the last three decades. She learned to clean headstones, focusing on forgotten Veterans’ headstones in private cemeteries. Diane became involved with the restoration of Ellsworth Cemetery after relocating to Maryland during 2020. She works for Microsoft as a Chief of Staff.  She is a member of M-HARP.

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