[This article was first published in Army Sustainment Professional Bulletin, which was then called Army Logistician, volume 2, number 6 (November–December 1970), pages 30–32. The text, including any biographical note, is reproduced as faithfully as possible to enable searchability. To view any images and charts in the article, refer to the issue itself, available on DVIDS and the bulletin’s archives at asu.army.mil/alog/.]
THERE ARE ALWAYS TWO SIDES to a success story and that of the professional logistician is no exception. First of all he must know his job and be highly motivated. Second, but just as important, he must have a satisfying home life. Credit is seldom given to the behind-the-scene “silent” partner who is ever a sustaining force.
At first glance, a story about the distaff side of life in a remote area such as the Army Materiel Command’s Umatilla Depot in Oregon would seem humdrum. This is not true. Women always find ways to keep busy and make a happy home life whether they are living in a cosmopolitan city or in the country. Here in the sundrenched rural area that is the home of Umatilla Depot, it takes the female newcomer only a few weeks to settle into the busy mainstream of friendly communities nestled in eastern Oregon’s spacious, sage-scented Columbia River Basin.
Umatilla Depot, which covers 19,000 acres, was established by the Army in 1941 and is named in honor of the Umatilla Indian tribe. Everyday operations of the depot include the receipt, storage, issue, and depot maintenance of ammunition and components, including chemical toxics, guided missiles, and special munitions.
But many a wife of a soldier just assigned to the oasis-like munitions and general supply depot has been apprehensive about whether she could adapt to a post where the military complement of only a dozen must commute to a commissary 150 miles distant, and Air Force at that. Even Hermiston, which bears the depot’s address, is 11 miles away. And that’s where most of the children of the uniformed staff go to school.
One wife with a New Jersey hometown was heard to remark, “How could they have tucked the depot so far away from the rest of the Army?”
But adaptable the wives are, and apprehensions swiftly melt away as the charm of hospitable neighbors, crystal-clean air, and relaxing country living prevails. Tensionless driving on uncrowded freeways and streets helps, too.
Wives of civilian employees live in Hermiston, known for its velvety emerald lawns and honey-sweet melons, or in the history-laden towns sprawled alongside the route of the famed Oregon Trail — towns named Echo or Irrigon, Stanfield, Umatilla, or Pendleton. Husbands of these women make up the majority of the depot workforce of less than 1,000.
Unlike grandmother’s sunup-to-dark schedule, cooking and housecleaning devour only part of the modern wives’ average day in Umatilla country. Mechanical homemaking aids allow time for self-development and community involvement, for career or contemplation, and for those important activities with the children.
Each chime of the clock brings new demands on her reserve of versatility. She is mother as well as wife, homemaker and gardener, hobbiest and career woman, kite-flying expert and budget juggler, fashionwise buyer and community pillar. But because she lives in a metropolis-free part of the West, she also may be rancher or cattle buyer, camp cook or crop irrigator, boater or nimrod, horse wrangler or county fair exhibitor.
She is a combination of industrious pioneer and “hip” sophisticate.
But to her husband, she is that very special, feminine partner he looks forward to greeting at the end of his busy workday.
Mrs. Mary V. Thomas was the information officer for Umatilla Army Depot. She attended Eastern Oregon College and was an honor graduate of the Defense lnformation School.
| Date Taken: | 06.17.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 06.17.2025 14:37 |
| Story ID: | 500856 |
| Location: | US |
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