(KERO) — We're celebrating the life of Betty Petrie, a World War II veteran about to mark her 106th birthday.
Let's rewind two years when 23ABC had the chance to chat with this remarkable lady on her 104th birthday.
This navy veteran answered the call to serve in the months following the attack on Pearl Harbor.
A second grade teacher in Salinas, Petrie was actually in the hospital on Dec. 7th, 1941.
Soon after she joined the U.S. Naval Reserve with the WAVES, the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service.
She was sent to Iowa for training and then to Washington, D.C. but she soon was doing clerical work in our nation's capitol handling sensitive communiques.
She worked out of the Mt. Vernon Seminary for Girls which was purchased by the U.S. Navy and operated as a communications annex.
It was responsible for many secret intelligence activities including breaking enemy codes such as the Enigma cipher system that was used by German U-boats.
Betty would only say security was very tight.
Friday she turns 106 and you're invited to take part in a parade. The staging area is in the Castle and Cooke parking lot at Stockdale Highway and Calloway Drive. The parade starts at 5:45 p.m.
And they're collecting video birthday wishes, so record a clip and send to bkdriverwalk@gmail.com.
