COLUMBUS, Ohio ( WCMH ) — A new movie is honoring a pioneering group of African American women and the work they did during World War II.
The film, The Six Triple Eight, highlights the work of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, and Sandra Waters-Holley is the daughter of one of the women in the battalion.
“I told someone today, sometimes you don’t know your worth until years later,” Waters-Holley said. “I said, it’s like a pity. We think we discard pity stone down on the street. But when somebody else finds that penny, may be valuable. So I’m so proud of my mom.”
Waters-Holley is the daughter of Claire Waters, a member of the battalion, a group of mostly Black women who joined the World War II effort in 1945. Their job was to sort through millions of backlogged mail and packages.
Waters moved from Georgia to Ohio while her husband was serving, and she would soon follow him into service.
The battalion is the focus of the new movie by Tyler Perry. Waters-Holley recalls stories her mother told her about serving in the battalion.