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After the United States entered into the fighting in Europe in April 1917, a need was recognized for volunteers to assist with the soldiers morale and welfare on the front lines. The Salvation Army, in an effort to fill that role, recruited 250 women to volunteer to assist the soldiers by bringing a sense of normalcy to the American troops. The women would perform varied tasks which included serving hot chocolate and clean socks, loading ammunition trucks, giving spiritual advice, and serving as a surrogate for wives and mothers to scared and homesick troops. According to one of the volunteers, listening was the most important thing they did.
As time went on and it was clear that there would be no end to the war anytime soon, two of the volunteers became unhappy with food that was being fed to the soldiers. The main meal was something called bully beef soup that was less than appetizing. It’s beef that is cured or pickled, finely minced, and then packaged in a can of gelatin. The women wanted to serve something that would remind the young men of their mothers cooking and canned meat wasn’t it.
Cookies were their first creation with a plan to bake old fashioned American pies. The problem was that fruit was in short supply, and baking in the trenches was almost impossible. So instead, they used empty wine bottles as rolling pins, and readily available ingredients to make little pastry dumplings, also known as doughnuts. The aroma as the doughnuts were cooked spread throughout the trenches summoning soldiers who stood in the rain and mud for a little taste of home. Despite finding themselves at war in some of the worst conditions imaginable, the sugary treats brought a smile to the weary soldiers faces, and reminded them, if only for a short time, of home.
After one soldier requested a doughnut with a hole, one of the two young volunteers had a mold made by a blacksmith in one of the French towns. The sugary treats not only were devoured by American troops, but also by French civilians. Soon the recipe spread to several French villages and the tasty American treat known as the doughnut, was adopted.
During World War II, the Red Cross took over the mission of the doughnut girls, renaming them Donut Dollies. They recruited young women who were at least 21 years of age, had some college and work experience, could provide reference letters, were healthy, physically able, and attractive. Only 1 in 6 women who applied were selected. The women were given Red Cross uniforms as well as received training at American University in Washington DC on the history, policies and procedures of the Red Cross.
The Dollies needed to properly represent the United States on the world stage. They had to wear a smile on their face at all times, could not wear earrings or wear excessive amounts of makeup. The Roosevelt administration knew that maintaining a soldier's morale during wartime was a critical component to winning, so the women also were asked to provide emotional support, not always an easy task in a war zone. In early 1944, 300 Donut Dollies were on their way to Europe.
To prepare for the D-Day landings in Normandy, the Red Cross acquired 100 English Army buses equipped with full kitchens and outfitted them with doughnut making machines. The buses also had sleeping bunks and a lounge. Three Dollies were assigned to each truck, referred to as a club-mobile, which was driven by a British police officer. Once in camp, the women would begin baking hundreds of doughnuts for the troops.
When the soldier heard music being played over the club-mobile speakers, they knew the tasty treats were ready to be served along with coffee. The music motivated the soldiers to start dancing. In addition to the doughnuts, books, newspapers, candy, gum, cigarettes and the company of the Dollies was provided.
The work of the Donut Dollies would continue into the Korean War, and then, at the request of Gen. William Westmoreland, the then-commander of U.S. forces in Vietnam, they were asked to serve the soldiers during the Vietnam War.
In Vietnam, in addition to the club-mobiles, the Dollies went to various fire bases and landing zones, usually traveling by helicopter, jeep or deuce-and-a-half, sometimes to six different stops in one day. Over the course of the war, they logged over 2 million miles, and many times slept in bunkers instead of their beds. Traveling in pairs, they hosted recreation programs such as football or trivia games, pool or ping-pong in an effort to divert the troops attention away from the war.
The Dollies, in many instances older than their troops, represented a big sister, or the girl next door. And although still referred to as Donut Dollies, in Vietnam, they no longer served the tasty treat. One of those Dollies in Vietnam was Dorner Carmichael.
Dorner was born and grew up in Jackson, Georgia and attended the University of Georgia. After college, she was looking for a job and wanted to travel and experience adventure. She looked into the Peace Corps and the Red Cross, and eventually settled on the latter.
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