When Doves Fly at the Texas Capitol: LoneStar White Doves Set to Soar in Honor of the 6888th at the Texas Capitol on May 22 at 3 PM.
When Doves Fly at the Texas Capitol: LoneStar White Doves Set to Soar in Honor of the 6888th at the Texas Capitol on May 22 at 3 PM. By Black Texans, Inc.
AUSTIN, TEXAS — On Thursday, May 22, 2025, at 3:00 PM, beneath the vast Texas sky, the grounds of the Texas State Capitol will transform into a place of solemn remembrance and celebration. The Texas 6888th Project, in partnership with LoneStar White Doves Release, will host a ceremonial dove release honoring the legacy and courage of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion — the only all-Black and Latina, all-female unit deployed overseas during World War II.
This sacred event, part of the When Doves Fly commemoration, will pay particular tribute to three members of the Six Triple Eight who died in the line of duty while stationed in France:
• Private Mary Bankston,
• Private Mary Barlow, and
• Sergeant Dolores Brown.
All three were killed in a tragic vehicle accident in Rouen in July 1945 and laid to rest with full military honors at the Normandy American Cemetery in Colleville-sur-Mer.
But the tribute will go even further — honoring all 855 Black and Latina women who served in the battalion and spotlighting the 44 courageous Texans, affectionately remembered as the Yellow Roses from Texas. Their strength, resilience, and patriotism continue to inspire generations.
✿ The 44 Yellow Roses from Texas ✿
Texas women who served in the 6888th Postal Battalion, World War II:
1. Hazel Allen, PFC – Corpus Christi
2. Bessie Booker, PVT – Corpus Christi
3. Erma Pauline Boyd, PVT – Arthur City
4. Ruth Verjil Brown, T5 – Beaumont
5. Freddie William Chinn, PFC – Wichita Falls
6. Florence Marie Cole, T5 – Fort Worth
7. Marguerite J. Ellis, PFC – Galveston
8. Juanita Goodloe, SSG – Waco
9. Mary Louise Hill, PFC – Athens
10. Mildred Lois Hooper, PFC – Longview
11. Pauline Lewis Hopkins, PFC – Marshall (aka Dr. Paulene Adrienne Lewis Hopkins)
12. Dorothy Lee Howard, CPL – Houston
13. Ernestine Elizabeth Hughes, T5 – Dallas
14. Georgia Clarence Hughes, PFC – Camp County
15. Ella Mae Jackson, PFC – Beaumont
16. Jerrell Lawrence, SSG – Caldwell
17. Catherine Lee, PFC – Greenville
18. Lucille Lewis, SGT – Fort Worth
19. Maggie Mae McClenton, PVT – Dallas (Born in Oklahoma)
20. Ruby Lee McClung, SGT – Wichita Falls
21. Martha Anna McKnight, PVT – Dallas
22. Ophelia Mills, PFC – Houston
23. Helen Beatrice Minor, PFC – Fort Worth
24. Catherine Louise Nelson, SGT – Dallas
25. Ruby M. O’Brien, SGT – Beaumont
26. Essie Oralea O’Riley, PFC – Berclair
27. Mablyne Ortiz, T5 – San Antonio / Timpson
28. Kate Pate, PFC – Jefferson / Port Arthur
29. Essie Lee Penn, PVT – Dallas / Houston
30. Mildred Elizabeth Peterson, PVT – Grayson / Denison
31. Calonia V. Powell, 2LT – Harris County
32. Jewell Rettig, T5 – Dallas
33. Minerva Loraine Revernal, PVT – Morris County
34. Eddie T. Richards, PVT – Madison / Walton
35. Winnie B. Richardson, PFC – Hankamer
36. Onnie Lois Roberts, PFC – Travis County / Timpson
37. Florida Elizabeth Robey, T4 – Houston
38. Erma L. Smith, PFC – Houston
39. Lucille Smith, PFC – Jefferson (Note: Discrepancy in racial classification at enlistment)
40. Rose Stuart, T4 – Houston
41. Millie Mary Taylor, PVT – Marshall
42. Johnnie Mae Walton, CPL – Waller / Walton
43. Myrtle Elizabeth Wright, PFC – Taylor
44. Mable Jeannette Zenon, PVT – Beaumont
These women defied the odds and prejudice of their time, answering their nation’s call with dignity and grace. They processed over 17 million pieces of mail in 90 days, restoring hope and morale to thousands of American troops across Europe and their families. Their motto was as simple as it was powerful:
“No Mail, Low Morale.”
The doves for the May 22 ceremony will come from LoneStar White Doves, lovingly cared for by “The Dove Lady.” These majestic white birds — homing pigeons of the Rock Dove family — will rise in synchronized flight from the Capitol grounds and return to their Austin lofts, creating a symbolic and emotional connection between the past and present.
The ceremony is the second major dove release by the Texas 6888th Project. The first took place on April 30, 2025, at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., where Minister Derrick Johnson of DJ Singing Doves released three doves in front of more than 200 youth, lifting spirits and memory into the skies above our nation’s capital.
Join us at the Texas Capitol as we lift their memory to the heavens — When Doves Fly.
For more information, please contact:
Pastor Kyev Tatum, Founding Director, Texas 6888th Project
President, Ministers Justice Coalition of Texas
📞 817-966-7625 | ✉️ kptatum1@gmail.com
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