I was so glad this morning to run an upbeat story. Westporter Eloise Reilly turned 100 on Sunday, and — from a safe distance — her neighbors helped her celebrate.
I called her a “longtime Westporter, and still-very-active community member.” I didn’t know the half of it.
Today, alert and inspired “06880” reader Kristin McKinney sent along a profile of Eloise she wrote a couple of years ago, for the Westport Garden Club newsletter. In honor of Eloise, she graciously shares it with us.
She picked up her landline on the second ring, old school style, no email, no cell phone. Connecticut native and Westport Garden Club member since 1977, Eloise Reilly was cheerful, bright and as receptive as she could be, certainly she would meet with me tomorrow for a WGC newsletter profile.
She gave me directions; we agreed to meet at 10 a.m. Approaching her property and ascending the longish driveway I noticed the American flag hoisted proudly on a tall, metal flagpole. Ellen Greenberg tipped me off that Eloise served in some capacity during World War II, and seeing Old Glory so elegantly displayed convinced me that was indeed the case.
I parked, found the door after looping around the house which coincidentally afforded me a very nice glimpse of Eloise’s gardens, and gave a gentle knock. Two sets of beautiful eyes met me, Eloise’s piping blues and those of her two-year old rescue kitty who viewed me somewhat suspiciously.
Eloise Reilly, on her 100th birthday. (Photo/Darren and Sally Spencer)
I was invited in and led to a comfy chair near a large bay window where the next three hours passed like a New York City minute. Not having the advantage of searching a Facebook page or Linked In profile in advance of our interview, I proceeded conversationally, looking for common ground.
Eloise was charmingly forthcoming; our initial topic of discussion involved her very successful career as a human resources manager for advertising giant Young & Rubicam that began in 1953, and a second career after tiring of the NYC commute as a realtor with Helen Benson Real Estate.
Talk moved to her home, a beautiful structure designed and built by none other than Eloise herself in 1956, in a time and era where women “just weren’t doing those types of things.” I asked Eloise where she developed her fondness for gardening and asked if as a little girl, she spent time in her mother’s gardens.
The answer was not only yes, but it turns out that like Janet Wolgast, her mother knew the Latin names of every variety of plant, flower and shrub that is identified by the American Horticulture Society.
What is her passion? Growing from seed. Eloise shared that she loves watching things grow, geraniums in particular. As a curious seed novice, I asked about her method for obtaining them, her quick-witted response was, “Order them from Fark’s!”
Eloise Reilly, during World War II.
An interview with Eloise wouldn’t be remotely complete without going into detail about a period in her life which she describes as, “a fabulous experience. Never happened before, will never happen again.”
After reading an article in Life Magazine, Eloise discovered women could go overseas with the Red Cross. She applied unsuccessfully multiple times, each rejection letter specifying the same reason: she didn’t meet the minimum age requirement of 25.
That year was 1943 and according to Eloise whose two brothers were in the Naval Air Corps, “1300 of Westport’s 7K residents were in active service, everybody and anybody enlisted.”
Not to be deterred, Eloise finally scored an interview in DC and in battling the age argument audaciously stated, “I’m not 25, the war is going to be over by the time I’m 25, but I’ll match my family against anybody you have in the Red Cross.” She was officially in.
Eloise Reilly became a member of the Clubmobilers, a unique unit of service recognized by U.S. Senate Resolution 471 dated May 23, 2012, for exemplary service during the Second World War. Clubmobiles, established in 1942 and conceived by Harvey Gibson, the Red Cross Commissioner to Great Britain, provided fresh coffee, doughnuts, entertainment and a listening ear to troops across Western Europe and eventually the Far East.
Eloise’s tour of duty took her through England, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Holland and Belgium, as she says, “zigzagging all over the place.” According to Eloise, “I learned to drive a six-wheel, two-ton truck with a double clutch and no power steering. We were assigned to a division, the 12th army group, and we had to meet them upon request in various towns or even countries. There were 8 trucks per group, 3 girls apiece, 24 in total. There was also a supply truck with two girls who could sing or play the piano.”
Eloise Reilly, as a Clubmobiler.
In the event of capture, the ladies were made second lieutenants and although this allowed them admittance into the officer’s club for a meal, they preferred to dine with the GI’s. The Clubmobilers found themselves living in tents, chateaus or even theoccasional, local bordello.
If they asked for directions to the powder room, most often the response was met with a nod toward the surrounding woods. Eloise remarked that in a world of men, the Clubmobiliers were placed on a pedestal, treated like sisters, aunts, mothers. “They were protected,” said Eloise. “Nobody got out of line, the GI’s were self-policing.”
I asked Eloise if she was ever afraid and the answer was a resounding “no.” While she admits to being apprehensive at times and despite some accidents and fatalities sustained by fellow Clubmobilers, she was never concerned for her own life.
In fact, her goal was to get to the Front.
FUN FACT: The Westport Garden Club is 96 years old. To Eloise, that’s almost a child.
I think she dated either my father or my uncle…as identified earlier.
Thank you so much for the birthday wishes
Happy Birthday, Eloise Reilly. You are positively GRAND!
thank you so much for the birthday wishes
Wonderful story. She would have had some unbelievable experiences I am sure!
I knew this gracious lady as HR for Young & Rubicam when I arrived there right after school. She was tough but fair and everyone loved and respected her. Of course, I never learned her incredible story. Thanks Dan. A great read.
I’m so glad you got her awesome story down in print! What a cool lady! Thanks Dan
As a 25 year employee of the American Red Cross I always love to hear these stories!
What an amazing story! Thank you Kristin for sharing and adding this sequel ! We have so many amazing women in town and to see Eloise Mark this huge milestone and continue to inspire this around her, you g and old, is remarkable! Kudos! Cheers!
Thank you for sharing this amazing story. Eloise is a long standing member of the Westport Garden Club who has contributed to the club, the town and our country throughout her remarkable life. Happy 100th Birthday!
Eloise!! God love you girl! And he has blessed you! Best in Health!! Robin
Lovely story & reporting on a strong, interesting, brave & hard working woman! I forwarded it far & wide!!
Elloise Reilly a long time friend of my mothers, Cameron Jelliffe. Their friendship started during WWII Clubmobilers. They later had a club so all the clubmobilers could keep up after the war. My mother married and moved to Sweden. They still kept their friendship going by mail. I myself moved to the US in 1980 and Elloise and I still keep in touch to this day. She calls out of the blue and shared “war stories” as well as stories my mother never shared with me. I blessed to know this remarkable lady. Peter von Feilitzen
Thank you for sharing Eloise’s story! Eloise and my mother Marie Adele Roversi Tydings were close friends from their time together as Red Cross Clubmobilers of Group A in WWII. They stayed in touch their entire lives until my mom passed in 2007. Eloise confirmed what I already suspected from my mother, which was that not a single woman in the Red Cross Clubmobilers didn’t count their service there as a defining moment of their lives. She said it was a different time, and that loyalty and trust were inherent in the women of Red Cross then. These women bonded for all of their lives.
Like Eloise, my mother was also too young to be accepted straight out of Bucknell College at 22, but somehow she got in as the youngest Clubmobiler to do so during the war.
Happily, I had the great pleasure of speaking at length with Eloise as a result of this article. Her stories were every bit enthralling as her memory was amazing. I won’t recant any of it here, but it suffices to say that she has the memory storage and recall of a super computer with an oversized heart as the operating system.
Thank you for sharing Eloise’s story! Eloise and my mother Marie Adele Roversi Tydings were friends from their time together as Red Cross Clubmobilers of Group A in WWII. They stayed in touch their entire lives until my mom passed in 2007. Eloise confirmed what I already suspected from my mother, which was that not a single woman in the Red Cross Clubmobilers didn’t count their service there as a defining moment of their lives. She said it was a different time, and that loyalty and trust were inherent in the women of Red Cross then. These women bonded for all of their lives.
Like Eloise, my mother was also too young to be accepted straight out of Bucknell College at 22, but somehow she got in.
Happily, I had the great pleasure of speaking at length with Eloise as a result of this article. Her stories were every bit enthralling as her memory was amazing. I won’t recant any of it here, but it suffices to say that she has the memory storage and recall of a super computer with an oversized heart as the operating system.