Helen Virginia Brooks was inducted into the WAVES, or Women Accepted for Voluntary Service of the U.S. N.R., on November 20, 1942. This was a newly formed Women's Reserve unit established in July 1942. Helen was to leave for Basic Training on December 15, 1942. Due to a terrible tragedy, Helen never made it to the first boot camp for WAVES.

Helen was born about 1916 in Massachusetts. He actual date of birth could not be verified. In the 1930 census she and her older sister, Priscilla, lived in Winthrop, Suffolk County, Massachusetts, with their parents, William W. and Alice (Martin) Brooks. Helen and her sister were listed as the adopted daughters of William Brooks, an attorney and World War I veteran. Alice had previously been married to Roger Adams, who died in 1937, but that marriage may have ended in divorce. Helen graduated from high school in 1934 and by 1940, at age 23, she was employed in her father's law office as a secretary.

On November 28, 1942, Helen and another newly inducted WAVE, Grace E. Brown, went out to have some fun at the Cocoanut Grove Night Club in Boston. Perhaps they went out to celebrate their new careers and were excited about what the future might hold. With the country at war, opportunities in the WAVES and the Armed Forces provided a way for many young women to serve their country and gain new training and skills.

That night, November 28, 1942, proved to be fatal to the two young women. A deadly fire broke out in the club, and with exit doors locked and highly flammable decorations in the club, the fire claimed 492 lives, including 51 servicemen and two WAVES. It was one of the deadliest fires in U.S. History. It was found out later that the Night Club had almost double the capacity of people allowed and had broken many safety regulations.

Helen's remains were brought back to her hometown of Winthrop, where a Solemn High Mass was held at St. John the Evangelist Church on December 2, 1942. She was laid to rest in Winthrop Cemetery.

Although Helen never went through Boot Camp, she had taken the solemn oath and commitment when she was inducted into the WAVES. She will not be forgotten.

This story is part of the Stories Behind the Stars project (see www.storiesbehindthestars.org**). This is a national effort of volunteers to write the stories of all 400,000+ of the US WWII fallen here on Fold3. Can you help write these stories? Related to this, there will be a smartphone app that will allow people to visit any war memorial or cemetery, scan the fallen's name and read his/her story.

If you noticed anything I missed in this profile, please go to the end of this story and see “Added by” to find my contact information.

References:

1930 United States Federal Census
1940 United States Federal Census
Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current
Newspapers.com - Record-Journal - 2 Dec 1942 - Page 14
Newspapers.com - The Boston Globe - 2 Dec 1942 - Page 18

Helen V Brooks