Marietta (Chong) Eng

Marietta (Chong) Eng

Although the Navy refused to accept Japanese American women throughout World War II, some Chinese American women volunteered to serve. Marietta (Chong) Eng, born in Honolulu, Hawaii, to a Chinese American family, decided to enlist in the WAVES because her brother was in the Navy. Her recruiter was initially uncertain about Eng's eligibility and had to check the rule book. The Navy trained Eng as an occupational therapist and assigned her to the US Naval Hospital on Mare Island, California, and later to the Navy hospital in Corona, California. Ensign Eng helped rehabilitate sailors and officers who had lost arms and legs in the war, teaching them to accomplish the many tasks of daily living.

Source: http://www.womensmemorial.org/APA.html

On July 23, 1863, Chinese American William Ah Hang became one of the first Asian Americans to enlist in U.S. Navy during the American Civil War.

Source: http://www.defenselink.mil/news