As we approach the Memorial Day Weekend and prepare to honor the military men and women who died in combat, we are drawn to reflect on the evolution of military nurses and the sacrifices they have made.  Here are some interesting facts about our “Angels on the Battlefield:”

During the Civil War, men and women served as volunteer nurses on and off the battlefield. Some of the more famous nurses include the poet Walt Whitman, Mary Todd Lincoln, author Louisa May Alcott, and the founder of the American Red Cross, Clara Barton.
In 1898, the Spanish American War began, during which 1,500 nurses served and 21 died. Ellen May Tower of Bryon, Michigan, was the first American nurse to die on foreign soil.
In 1901, Congress established the Army Nurse Corps.  Seven years later, it created the Navy Nurse Corps. It was not, however, until 1947, that military nurses were given permanent commissioned officer status.
During World War I 22,000 nurses served and 430 lost their lives.
With the outbreak of World War II, 74,000 nurses joined and 460 lost their lives. Aleda E. Lutz of Freeland, Michigan was the first nurse to die in a combat zone.
During the Korean War, 16 nurses lost their lives.
After the Korean War, men were again allowed to serve as nurses in the military.  Up to this time, they were assigned as orderlies and other duties.
There are ten nurses on the Viet Nam Memorial Wall, eight women and two men.
Eight nurses were killed in Operation Desert Storm.
Four nurses were killed on the USS Cole.
To date, 12 nurses have been killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts. Captain Maria Ines Ortiz was the first nurse since the Viet Nam War to be killed during combat.
To all our military nurses who gave the ultimate price in the service of their country, thank you.