
DATE: Friday, October 10, 1997              TAG: 9710090232

SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON   PAGE: 6    EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: COVER STORY 

SOURCE: BY SUSAN W. SMITH, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  135 lines

MILITARY WOMEN REMEMBERED CHESAPEAKE WOMAN, AN EX-MARINE, WILL BE AMONG THOSE ON HAND NEXT WEEKEND TO DEDICATE NEW ARLINGTON MEMORIAL.

Duty. Honor. Pride.

Almost 30 years ago, those words had special meaning for 20-year-old, dark-haired, underweight Michelle Capucci. In support of her beliefs, Capucci joined the U.S. Marine Corps to serve her country.

``My father was in the Army and my brother joined the Navy,'' Capucci said. ``At an early age, I decided I also wanted to be a person whose job was to protect freedom. I had a very patriotic, I-love-America dream. And I still do.''

Three decades later, Capucci still believes in duty, honor and pride, and she still has plans to serve. Although she is no longer in the Marines, she will help dedicate a memorial to women in the military next weekend in Washington, D.C.

More than 10 years in the planning, the $21.5 million structure - called The Women In Military Service for America Memorial - is the first major memorial to honor 1.8 million women who have served in all branches of the U.S. armed forces since the American Revolution.

Retired Air Force Brigadier Gen. Wilma L. Vaught, one of the most decorated women in U.S. military history, said most women never got a chance to tell their war stories. Vaught heads Women in Military Service for America (WIMSA), which has coordinated the privately funded project.

In 1996, the state of Virginia - which has 46,500 living military women - donated $50,000 and joined 32 other states noted on the memorial's Honor Roll of States.

As part of the opening services, Capucci and about 30,000 other women will gather at the Lincoln Memorial and participate in a candlelight march and a special service as they proceed to the Women's Memorial.

``It is truly an honor and will certainly be an awe-inspiring moment to once again be a small part of American history.'' Capucci said.

The 4.2-acre memorial is located at the gateway to Arlington National Cemetery where an original 1932 structure was incorporated into the new 35,000-square-foot design. The monument features an upper terrace with views of Washington and an arc of glass tablets etched with quotations. The tablets will illuminate the cemetery hillside at night, and during the day as the sun passes overhead, the historic words will reflect on the walls below.

The memorial houses a Hall of Honor, Court of Valor, an education center, exhibit alcoves, a 196-seat theater and a computerized database that will be the heart of the memorial's education center, Vaught said.

``About 250,000 women have recorded personal recollections and photos which will become a permanent part of the nation's history,'' said Marilla Cushman, director of public relations for the Women's Memorial. ``We want to hear their sacrifices, their achievements and their everyday experiences, which will connect us to the past and lead us to the future.''

So far, about 6,000 veterans from Virginia have been included in the database. According to the Veterans Administration, there are about 5,000 living veterans in Virginia Beach, 2,440 in Norfolk and 1,400 in Chesapeake.

Cushman said visitors will have access to 12 computerized terminals. By typing in a name, they can browse records and photographs and listen to the stories of individual women.

``I'll look for Denny Atchison, my sister,'' said Retired Marine Lt. Constance Hazen, 69, of Virginia Beach, whose deceased sister was in the Army Nurse Corps during World War II and served in England, France and Germany. ``Then I'll check my own story. It was all so long ago, and this is a way to remember.''

Biographies and quotes from women like Deborah Sampson, an American Revolutionary soldier, and Clara Barton, a nurse during the Civil War, will link to stories from people such as Oveta Culp Hobby, the World War II Director of the Women's Army Corps, and Rhonda Cornum, a Desert Storm Army major.

In 1989, Capucci paid her $25 donation fee to become a charter member and to record her own story.

She grew up in Florida, and joined the Marines in 1966 with headstrong plans to go to Vietnam. She now lives in Chesapeake.

``I was the only woman on the bus of new recruits, and we arrived at Parris Island at 2 a.m. I took a gulp and wondered what had I done,'' Capucci said. ``But I was raised with discipline and respect, and I quickly learned how to cope with boot camp. I just accepted it as life on another planet.''

Capucci's first orders were to San Diego where she was assigned to motor transport. Months later, she was transferred to Washington to the office of the assistant chief of staff. It was the peak of the Vietnam War, and her duties included checking autopsy and detailed death reports and sending letters of consolation. Because of her classified work, she had to burn her typewriter ribbon at the end of each day.

``And from my office I could see Arlington Cemetery. It's a view I shall never forget,'' Capucci said. ``Every day there was an average of 30 funerals with gun salutes and taps.''

In 1971, Capucci's plans for a military career ended when she was needed at home. Later, she settled in Chesapeake and worked as a civilian employee at the Norfolk Naval Base, followed by 18 years with the Chesapeake city government.

Capucci urges active duty or retirees, WWI veterans or new recruits to attend the dedication and to wear their uniforms to the Oct. 18 candlelight march and dedication. Other activities include special luncheons for each service branch, tours of memorial and ``A Time to Give Thanks'' celebration. ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos including color cover by CHARLIE MEADS

This is a model of the 4.2-acre Women In Military Service for

America Memorial, located at the gateway to Arlington National

Cemetery.

Michelle Capucci, still able to wear her Marine Corps uniform,

joined the Marines in 1966 at age 20 and served until 1971.

LEFT: A likeness of Michelle Capucci appeared on the cover of the

sheet music for the ``March of the Women Marines,'' a waltz written

for the 25th anniversary of the Women's Marine Corps in 1968. ABOVE:

Another sketch of her face looked out from thousands of Marine Corps

post cards mailed during the 1968 holiday season.

One of Capucci's treasured keepsakes is the pen President Lyndon B.

Johnson handed her after he signed the bill to allow women to become