Maria Calabrese Murray’s WAVES uniform—and a hand-drawn map of Iwo Jima—are on display at the National Veterans Resource Center at the Daniel and Gayle D’Aniello Building.
Maria Calabrese Murray ’44 was 17 when she arrived at Syracuse University in 1940. A talented flutist and pianist, Murray had already performed with the Columbia University Symphonic Band before pursuing higher education in Syracuse. By the time she earned her bachelor of fine arts degree in art education, the U.S. had been fighting in World War II for nearly three years, and women across the country were stepping into roles being opened to them for the first time in the military.
Murray was chosen as one of five women from Syracuse University to attend the U.S. Naval Midshipman School at Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, training alongside other women who would help redefine what military service meant for generations to come. She completed the program and was commissioned as an Ensign in the U.S. Navy WAVES, or Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service.
Thanks to a donation from Murray’s daughter, Susan Cooper, a part of Murray’s military legacy is now prominently on display in the gallery at the National Veterans Resource Center (NVRC) at the Daniel and Gayle D’Aniello Building. The informational display contains uniform items from Murray, as well as photos and articles from her time on campus and in the service.
“My mother always spoke of being a WAVE with great pride. Growing up, I didn’t recognize the significance until I was older, particularly after she passed away in 2012,” Cooper says. “She had been living with us for eight years, so I had all of her items in my basement, and I knew it had to find a wonderful home.”