The Hello Girls Congressional Gold Medal Celebration at the Military Women's Memorial (March 2025)

On March 19, 2025, Partners, Members, and Friends, came together at the Military Women's Memorial to celebrate The Hello Girls and the passing of the legislation awarding the Hello Girls the Congressional Gold Medal for their service during World War I.

During World War I, nearly all switchboard operators in the US were women, trained by AT&T, many just up the road from the Military Women's Memorial at Fort Meade. Yet when the American Expeditionary Forces deployed to France, they used male personnel to staff these vital parts of the telephone network. When General Pershing arrived, he issued a personal request for a small unit of women to serve as switchboard operators and real-time translators so that French and American officers could coordinate under fire. More than 7,600 women volunteered for the first 100 slots.

Eventually, 223 women and 2 men would serve in France in the Signal Corps Telephone Operator Unit (Female) - known as the "Hello Girls." They were the first unit of women to directly contribute to combat operations in American history. After supporting combat operations in France, they returned home to learn they were “civilian contractors” instead of soldiers. They were ignored for decades and forgotten by history.

For almost 60 years, the surviving unit members petitioned Congress for the same veterans recognition afforded to their male colleagues and female Army nurses. Finally, in 1977, Congress passed a law paving the way for the Hello Girls to be recognized as full veterans of the US Armed Forces. Unfortunately, only a few Hello Girls were still alive.

In December 2024, nearly 50 years later, the President signed legislation awarding the Hello Girls the Congressional Gold Medal for their service, the highest civilian honor awarded by the United States Congress. This extraordinary recognition by our Congress and the nation is a fitting close to the Hello Girls’ journey – a 100-year-plus journey of service, sacrifice, and an unyielding determination to receive the recognition they so well deserve.

It was an privilege to come together to honor and celebrate these genuine American heroes, the members of the groundbreaking World War I Signal Corps Telephone Operator Unit (Female) members – America’s first soldiers – the Hello Girls.

The Military Women's Memorial is proud to preserve their legacy and share their stories of service at their Memorial - the Military Women's Memorial.