Led by twenty-five-year-old Grace Banker, thirty-two telephone
operators -- affectionately called "Hello Girls" back in the US --
became the first female combatants in World War I.
Follow Grace Banker's journey from her busy life as a telephone
switchboard trainer in New York to her pioneering role as the Chief
Operator of the 1st Unit of World War I telephone operators in the
battlefields of France. With expert skill, steady nerves, and steadfast
loyalty, the Signal Corps operators transferred orders from commanders
to battlefields and communicated top-secret messages between American
and French headquarters. After faithfully serving her country
--undaunted by freezing weather and fires; long hours and little sleep,
and nearby shellings and far off explosions -- Grace was the first and
only woman operator in the Signal Corps to be awarded the Army's
Distinguished Service Medal.