Carmen García Rosado is an educator, author, and activist for the right of women veterans. She was one the first 200 Puerto Rican women to be recruited into the Women’s Army Corps during World War II. Carmen García Rosado was born on October 29, 1926 in Humacao, Puerto Rico. She was the seventh of nine children to Jesus García Doble and Maria Rosado Arce de García. She went to school in the towns of Las Piedras and Caguas and graduated from Santure Central High School. Her father was the foreman of a sugar plantation who would often be assigned to work in Cuba and the Dominican Republic. Her father’s travelling inspired the desire within herself to see a world beyond Puerto Rico. In 1944, at the age of 18, she earned her teachers diploma from the University of Puerto Rico. The United States had entered World War II by this time and needed a boost to its military capabilities. Therefore, the United States ordered Puerto Rico’s 65th Infantry Regiment to full war strength and drafted many off the island, including those who had little experience with the English language. The Army recognized the need to fill various positions left empty by male soldiers who were deployed to the front lines. The United States Army sent three Women’s Army Corps recruiters to the island of Puerto Rico with the goal of organizing a unit of 200, for various positions. Over 1,500 women applied for the job, however only 200 were selected including Carmen García Rosado. She was sworn in during a ceremony in San Juan and sent to Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia for basic training. Here the women’s abilities were tested and given further training. Some were assigned as dental assistants and nurses while others were assigned as clerks among other things. García Rosado was assigned to the position of dental assistant. Shen was assigned to the Company 6, 2nd Battalion, 21st Regiment of Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps, a segregated Hispanic unit. Once training was completed they were sent to the Port of Embarkation of New York City. One of the hardships the women were subjected to was the social and racial discrimination against the Hispanic community. The women of the Company 6, 2nd Battalion, 21st Regiment of Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps returned to Puerto Rico once the American participation in World War II came to an end. García Rosado and the rest of the women were honorably discharged, and like most of the other women, she returned to civilian life. García Rosado continued as a teacher while earning her Bachelor of Arts degree from the Interamerican University. She traveled throughout the United States to work on her thesis, titled "Career Education," and worked on her doctorate in supervision and administration in education. She retired in 1979 but continued to work at Puerto Rico Institute Jr. College and later on as Resident Director of Señoritas de la Universidad del Sagrado Corazon (University of the Sacred Heart). In 1989, García Rosado was named consultant to the Director of Veterans Affairs in Puerto Rico. She used this position to become an activist and work on the rights of Puerto Rican women veterans. In 2006, García Rosado published her book titled LAS WACS-Participacion de la Mujer Boricua en la Segunda Guerra Mundial (The WACs-The participation of Puerto Rican women in World War II). García Rosado’s book was the first to document the experiences of the first 200 Puerto Rican women to join the Women’s Army Corps.

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