Meet the 99-Year-Old Oregon Woman Who Was a Real-Life “Rosie the Riverter” in World War II
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Commemorating World War II Workers
Eighty years after the end of World War II, very few people who worked during that conflict are still alive. In Albany, Oregon, members of the American Rosie the Riveter Association took part in a Veterans Day parade to honor those who built aircraft and other war materials on the home front. One of the marchers was Nita Eggers, a longtime resident of Albany who had worked as a riveter at the Boeing plant in Seattle during World War II. Eggers and others like her represent a generation of women who stepped into industrial jobs when men were serving overseas in the military.
The term “Rosie the Riveter” came from a popular World War II song and was used to describe women who worked in factories and shipyards making aircraft, vehicles, and other vital equipment. These workers helped keep production going at a time when the nation’s armed forces were stretched across multiple fronts, and their role became an important part of the war effort.
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ROTC Volunteers Join Parade Activities
About thirty members of Oregon State University’s ROTC program arrived well before the start of the parade to volunteer and assist with event duties. With more hands than tasks that morning, one volunteer coordinator humorously assigned ten of the cadets to help a reporter “find Rosie” among the parade participants. The interaction brought attention to the presence of real Rosie veterans and highlighted the connections between older generations and those training for future service.
This parade in Albany is one of many Veterans Day celebrations across the United States that seek to remember both the service members who fought abroad and the workers who supported them from home. It also points to the lasting impact of the Rosie the Riveter image, which helped encourage millions of women to work in manufacturing and other critical industries during the war.
