Obituary of June Leckie

June Swift Leckie, 90, of Palm City, Florida, died on September 30, 2012 at Water's Edge Extended Care, Palm City, Florida.

Born in Akron, Ohio, she had been a resident of Palm City for over 35 years before coming from Bluefield, West Virginia.

An English literature and French major at Ohio State University, during World War II she taught herself how to fly and then was selected to join an elite group of women pilots, the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), the first women to fly for the United States military. 25,000 women applied, 1,830 were accepted, and 1,074 completed training. Along with transporting all 78 types of aircraft that the Army Air Corp flew, June was an instrument flight instructor, teaching "very young men with very old eyes" who were stateside from the front. Not recognized as veterans until 1979 for their service in WW II, in 2010 June and her WASP sisters received the Congressional Gold Medal, our country's highest civilian honor.

She was an active member of the First Presbyterian Church in Bluefield WV where she and her husband, Bill Leckie, raised their five children to live full and generous lives.

Survivors include daughters, Dana Leckie of Oak Park, Illinois and Sharon Parkinson of Bluefield, West Virginia; sons, William Leckie of Mount Temper, New York and Andrew J. Leckie of Lexington, Kentucky; five grandchildren, and three great-granddaughters. She was preceded in death by one grandchild, her husband William H. Leckie and a daughter, Jan Marie Leckie.

Services will be held in the autumn on East River Mountain in Bluefield, West Virginia.

For those who wish, contributions may be made in her name to the Texas Woman's University WASP Foundation, TWU Coordinator for Special Collections, P.O. Box 425528, Denton, TX, 76204-5528; 940-898-375; email womansc@twu.edu.

Arrangements are under the direction of the Forest Hills Funeral Homes Palm City Chapel.

An online registry is available at: www.foresthillspalmcityflorida.com.