PHOENIX — A World War II hero and longtime Tempe resident is being honored for her service in the U.S. military’s first all-Black, all-female battalion.
Now 104 years old, Maj. Fannie Griffin McClendon is the last surviving member of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion of the Women’s Army Corps.
On Thursday, McClendon was awarded a bronze plaque during a ceremony at Steele Indian School Park in Phoenix. The plaque will be permanently housed at the VA Medical Center adjacent to the park.
“I can’t believe this is happening,” McClendon told KTAR News 92.3 FM.
A WWII hero and Valley legend is being recognized for her role in breaking gender, race, and even logistical barriers.
Major Fannie Griffin-McClendon is the last surviving member of the Six Triple Eight Battalion, the first all-black and all female unit.@ColtonKrolak has more. pic.twitter.com/NV7CK5FXb6
— Arizona’s Morning News on 92.3 (@AZMorningNews) August 22, 2025
McClendon said she was still in shock over the recognition and only wished her mother and sister were alive to witness it.
“She didn’t want me to go in the service,” McClendon said of her mother. “After a while, when I would come home and I didn’t wear my uniform, instead she wanted to show me off to her friends.”
After leaving the Army after the war, McClendon joined the Air Force and served as a supply officer until 1971.
Tempe World War II hero’s unit featured in Netflix movie
McClendon’s postal unit, which inspired a 2024 Netflix movie called “The Six Triple Eight,” broke through more than race and gender barriers; it overcame logistical ones too. The group famously cleared and sorted more than 17 million pieces of undelivered mail that had piled up in warehouses in England.
“The 855 women of Six Triple Eight didn’t just sort the mail; they gave our troops hope, reconnected families across an ocean, and they did our country an unforgettable service,” U.S. Rep. Greg Stanton, whose district includes Tempe, said during the ceremony.
Members of the unit were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal in 2022, but it was only recently minted. On Thursday, Stanton presented McClendon with that medal.
“Your service, your sacrifice, your strength makes all of us better Americans,” the congressman said. “Today, we don’t just honor your past; we celebrate the present and the future that you have helped secure for all of us.”
Tempe Mayor Corey Woods and Phoenix Councilmember Kesha Hodge Washington also attended the ceremony.
“We both recognize that we stand on the shoulders of giants each and every day, and you are undoubtedly one of those giants and an absolute living legend,” Woods said.
“Thank you for your service to our country, thank you for being a trailblazer for women and for African Americans everywhere.”
The post 104-year-old Tempe WWII veteran honored for her service in groundbreaking unit appeared first on KTAR.
