WWII spy Patricia Warner, 98, gets surprised with a Congressional Gold Medal
Congress first recognized the Office of Strategic Services with the Congressional Gold Medal in 2018
Rep. Katherine Clark surprised former World War II spy Patricia Warner, 98, with a Congressional Gold Medal on Tuesday.
“We’d like to present to you a Congressional Gold Medal that we made for you to thank you for your service,” Clark said at a small gathering at the Lincoln Local Library in her Massachusetts district.
“Well say it louder so everybody can hear,” Warner, of Lincoln, Mass., replied to laughter.
Warner signed up to collect intelligence for the Office of Strategic Services after her husband died in combat in 1942, WBZ reported.
“My husband was killed in the war and I wanted to do something useful,” Warner said, according to WBZ.
Warner was a spy for the Allies for two years, Clark said. She was sent to Spain, which was sympathetic to the Nazis. Her task was to infiltrate high society and report back what she heard, WBZ reported.
Her duties included collaborating with the French resistance through Morse code to help American pilots escape Nazi-occupied France.
Clark said the honor is part of a growing effort to recognize the women who had a role in the WWII war effort.
“So many stories of historic and heroic women go untold. Today, I had the honor of giving Patricia Warner the recognition she deserves for her fearless service as a spy in WWII,” Clark said in a tweet.
So many stories of historic and heroic women go untold. Today, I had the honor of giving Patricia Warner the recognition she deserves for her fearless service as a spy in WWII. Thank you, Patricia- and happy 98th birthday!! https://t.co/NXxzEqhXBN
— Katherine Clark (@RepKClark) May 28, 2019
Congress first recognized the OSS with a Congressional Gold Medal in a Capitol Hill ceremony in 2018. The information gathering network was the forerunner to the Central Intelligence Agency and the military’s Special Operations Forces, according to the CIA.
