Oregon150

The following excerpt is from a letter written by Oregon State College alumna, Jayne Walters Latvala, to Elaine Kollins Sewell, editor of the Oregon State Yank. This letter is part of the Oregon State Yank Collection in the Oregon State University Archives.

Seaside, Oregon
24 November 1943

Dear Elaine–

From my typing, you’re probably wondering what kind of job I’m holding down. Well, it is typing and more, but just now I’m eavesdropping on a long distance call, listening to a good band on the radio and trying to get this finished before the mail comes up—so please excuse. We build and outfit minesweepers here, or rather the yard where we are located. I’m with the Navy office that oversees the stuff—it’s rather fun greeting officers and men and pushing them out to sea to make way for the next ones. Sometimes when they’re a long time outfitting, John and I entertain them with weekend clambakes at our little cottage. We’re getting pretty worried about the rubber and gas situation now—for it is 17 miles from our Seaside home to the shipyard and John has to go another seven miles to his work, making 48 miles round trip daily. Our tires are shreds and I tremble everytime we pass a car.

Our office has been taking time out for the blood donations and we really have a party of it. I’m now trying to persuade the others in my AAUW group that they, too, can help out. They always seem to have such a huge amount of excuses stored away. I’m afraid that I’m much more generous with my blood than money, for I feel too much of our money goes to buy the huge spools of red tape. All of us here mount our soap boxes regularly—in fact, if we’re a good example—or I should say, a representative, example—of the thinking done in the thousands of similar govt. offices, I see a great hope for change in administration. Oh, boy! But I shan’t go further into that …
…
Well, there’s the noon whistle, so I must concentrate on my fasting in preparation for tomorrow—we have to work, but that’ll just sharpen the inner woman to a greater capacity. I hope your turk’s delicious.

Sincerely,
Jayne Walters Latvala