Thelma Purdy Carr, 92, devoted family matriarch, WWII vet

FOR MEN AND WOMEN in the military, especially in time of war, there are few things more precious than mail from home.

And there are few jobs more satisfying than seeing to it that the mail gets through.

During some of the desperate final days of World War II, that job fell to women like Thelma Purdy, a member of the Women's Army Corps, stationed in Europe.

Being an African-American woman, hers was an all-black unit in the segregated service of the time. She worked as a postal clerk in France from March 1944 to March 1946, through some of the bitterest fighting of the war.

She received the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, the World War II Victory Medal and the Good Conduct Medal.

Thelma Purdy Carr, as she became after marrying J.B. Carr, died Nov. 14 of lung cancer. She was 92 and lived in Wynnefield.

Thelma was a dedicated family matriarch whose meals were legendary. She also loved to knit and made sweaters for the men of the family for many years.

She provided her husband with her help and encouragement as he built a radiator business from a small shop to a busy factory. They were married in 1948. He died in 1996.

"Mom was really a pioneer," said her son Reginald. "She had great courage as was demonstrated in her enlisting in the Women's Army Corps during World War II. She was part of the first contingent of women sent overseas."

"Our grandmother always put family first," said her grandson, Dexter. "She made food from scratch, including homemade rolls, pies, corn bread, greens, fried fish and baked turkey with all the fixin's on a table with folded napkins.

"She was also an avid fan of football, basketball, golf, tennis, boxing and the Olympic Games."

Thelma was born in Philadelphia and was raised with her older sister, Ernestine, by her mother, Mary, and stepfather, Willie Purdy.

She graduated from Simon Gratz High School in 1937, and went on to the Virginia State College for Negroes, now Virginia State University, from which she received a bachelor's degree.

"Mom described her own mother as loving and kind," Reginald said. "She admired her so much."

After her marriage, "Mom worked as a social worker initially, still pursuing her passion to help others," Reginald said. "She eventually let go of the outside work, lending support to her husband as he pursued his dream of owning a business."

When Thelma was diagnosed with lung cancer at age 90, she accepted it with equanimity.

Reginald quoted her as saying: "I am happy with the life I've lived. I had a good life and I am not afraid of death. God has been good to me and I have lived my life to be good to others. I don't hold on to problems or any hardships in my life. I remember the good times and blessings of my family and friends. I have no regrets."

Besides her son, sister and grandson, she is survived by two other sons, Kenneth and Gerald, and two great-grandchildren.

Services: 2 p.m. Thursday at Washington Crossing National Cemetery in Newtown.