“The history of the ‘Six Triple Eight’ says a lot about the generation of African-American leaders at that time,” said Steven Miller, vice president of institutional advancement at Wilberforce University. “And the most impactful part is that Charity eventually came back to the Dayton community and led a full life of community leadership after being in the military. But people being aware of the story of the ‘Six Triple Eight,’ being aware of the injustice those women had to face while serving this country with patriotic hearts and minds in spite of segregated circumstances, is really the story that has to be remembered.”
Credit: Bob Mahoney/Perry Well Films 2/Courtesy of Netflix
Credit: Bob Mahoney/Perry Well Films 2/Courtesy of Netflix
On Dec. 6, 2024, writer/director Tyler Perry’s compelling Netflix adaptation, “The Six Triple Eight,” received an enthusiastic, sold-out opening night local premiere at The Neon in downtown Dayton. Based on Kevin M. Hymel’s article “Fighting a Two-Front War” featured in WWII History Magazine, the film stars a dynamic Kerry Washington as the straightforward, no-nonsense trailblazer attempting to keep her unit focused no matter the obstacles.
After the screening, Miller led an informative talkback with Stanley Earley III and Judith Earley, Charity’s children, and he has since seen the film three times. He continues to be inspired by Washington’s vivid portrayal of Earley, a 1938 Wilberforce University alumna.
“You can see the tenacity of Charity’s personality and leadership, how those young ladies followed her,” Miller said. “These ladies got behind their leader to accomplish a task for servicemen they would never see. Many of those servicemen didn’t look like them or come from backgrounds like them. But they had a job in front of them they were tasked to do and they were going to do it primarily because nobody thought they could do it.”
‘Stand up for what is right’
Yellow Springs native Ruth Elizabeth Wright (1920-2013) was among the women of the “Six Triple Eight.” A descendant of slaves and the daughter of a World War I veteran, Wright became an activist through her life experiences growing up in the village dealing with racial and gender discrimination.
“It is these experiences, with the knowledge of those that passed before her, that gave (my mother) her passion to stand up for what is right, but educate yourself to be better prepared for anything that comes before you,” said Sterling Wright, the youngest of Ruth’s three children. “These lessons she passed down to her children and they have done the same for their children. You have to be strong and you have to be educated.”
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
While serving with the 6888th Central Postal Battalion in England, Wright met her future husband, Greg, an Army truck driver driving mail and ammunition to the front lines. After her discharge from the service, she and Greg married and settled in Piqua but a few years later returned to Yellow Springs. In addition to her many years of assisting community service projects and championing volunteerism, she worked at Vernay Labs as a postal clerk until her retirement and notably obtained a degree from Antioch College at the age of 59.
“She was an activist at heart who also fought for women’s rights,” Wright said. “That was the type of individual my mother was. My mother was selected for the ‘Six Triple Eight’ not just for her capacity but her moral guidelines. My mom was humble. People knew she was in the (military) but didn’t know she was in the ‘Six Triple Eight.’ She kept that to herself. She didn’t brag about it.”
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Wright has fond memories of attending the 2022 Congressional Gold Medal Celebration honoring the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, which took place at the Military Women’s Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. After the ceremony, he enjoyed hearing stories from other families bonded by their shared history, giving credence to the meticulous selection process that formed the unit.
“It was amazing to know how many women gave up college to enlist or had successful professional businesses,” he said. “They were individuals who already had a certain moral background and drive. For me, it’s a sense of community. I believe when you get individuals together — no matter their race, religion or beliefs — who are motivated the entire group becomes stronger. There’s a synergy.”
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
Credit: CONTRIBUTED
He’s also pleased with Perry’s depiction of the unit and its impact, which he says will help broaden the slate of prominent Black figures routinely celebrated during Black History Month.
“There’s more to Black History Month than Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Rosa Parks and others. We tend to focus on the same individuals every time but we know their stories. It’s good to spotlight other individuals and the ‘Six Triple Eight’ has a very rewarding story,” Wright said.
‘My mom would be very pleased’
On Jan. 23, “The Six Triple Eight” received an Oscar nomination in the Original Song category for Diane Warren’s ballad “The Journey,” featured in the film against the backdrop of archival footage of the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion. Due to a shift in tone in response to the California wildfires, the five nominated songs will not be performed at the March 2 ceremony. Producers will focus on reflections from the songwriters instead.
“I’m so proud and honored to be nominated for my song ‘The Journey’ from Tyler Perry’s film ‘The Six Triple Eight,’” Warren said in a Netflix article. “Inspired by the powerful, true story of these incredible women and brought to life with perfection by the amazing artist H.E.R., this song about resilience resonates within the movie and in life. We are all on our own journey.”
“When you think about all the material that gets produced in a year, to be singled out among a group of five is pretty amazing,” said Judith Earley. “People say it’s an honor to be nominated and it’s true. Just to hear ‘The Six Triple Eight’ named at the Oscars and be recognized is special.”
“I am very pleased that so many people have watched the movie and have found it uplifting and inspirational,” said Stanley Earley III.
Last fall Judith and Stanley attended a promotional event for the film at the Military Women’s Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. While there they met Washington, who was the guest of honor. According to Netflix, Washington prepared for the film by extensively reading Earley’s 1989 memoir “One Woman’s Army: A Black Officer Remembers the WAC.”
“I love that it took women, and Black women in particular, to understand that in order to be successful in the winning of freedom and justice, we have to stay strong in our hearts, and that without morale, without feeling a deeper connection to your loved ones, without being able to hear from your mother or you wife or family and friends and say to them, ‘I love you’ through the mail, that people’s hearts were getting small,” Washington said. “I love that Charity Adams came up with that, and I love that it’s in the film.”
Credit: ELIZABETH HELM-F
Credit: ELIZABETH HELM-F
Judith believes her mother would be proud of Washington’s portrayal.
“I’m so proud of my mother and I continue to learn things that have been uncovered that Stanley or I didn’t know,” she said. “I believe that everybody is born with an assignment that God puts us at a particular place and time to do. And I think my mother’s (upbringing) helped mold her into the person she became.”
‘Serious about giving back to the community’
After World War II, Earley, who grew up in Columbia, South Carolina, eventually relocated to Dayton in 1952 with her husband, Stanley Earley, Jr., M.D. Her commitment to community included serving on a variety of boards, including Dayton Art Institute, Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, Dayton Power and Light, Dayton Metro Housing Authority, the American Red Cross, and Sinclair Community College.
Credit: ddn archive
Credit: ddn archive
She also volunteered for the United Way, United Negro College Fund and the YWCA among others, and was pivotal in the creation of Parity Inc.’s Black Leadership Development Program in 1982.
“Charity helped create the Black Leadership Development Program because the Dayton Leadership Program was not allowing African Americans in the program in sufficient numbers,” said Edmund Moore, co-chair of Parity Inc.’s executive committee. “She was serious about giving back to the community. And in talking to some of my seniors who knew her and worked with her, they were afraid to approach her because she was so serious. They thought she was unapproachable even though she wasn’t.”
The Rev. Daria Dillard Stone, founding CEO of The Servant Sharing Ministries, also recalled Earley’s influence in the Black Leadership Development Program during the 1980s.
“Ms. Earley was one of the speakers who would come to talk with us on Saturdays about Black leadership,” Stone said. “Initially, I thought she was mean but that was just her military (essence). However, as I got to know her over the years, she was so much fun and really loved to cook. But she was strictly business and was serious about leading our Black people into excellence. I’m the same way but she just had her own way of doing it. Ms. Earley also told us you only get one chance to make a first impression and when I saw the movie I said ‘that is her!’ It sent chills up my spine.”
Credit: Natalie Jones
Credit: Natalie Jones
In addition to Charity Adams Earley Girls Academy, one of 17 elementary schools within Dayton Public Schools, the 6888 Kitchen Incubator located in the Dayton Arcade is also named in her honor. Organizers remain committed to breaking barriers and creating pathways for success for underserved food entrepreneurs in homage to the historic unit.
“Lt. Col. Earley’s leadership demonstrated what’s possible when determined individuals are given the resources and support to achieve their goals,” said Dabriah Rice, executive kitchen manager of the 6888 Kitchen Incubator. “The spirit of perseverance, community service and breaking down barriers that defined the 6888th Battalion lives on through our work supporting diverse food entrepreneurs in the Dayton region. We’re proud to carry forward Lt. Col. Earley’s legacy of creating opportunities and fostering success against the odds.”
Leaving a lasting imprint
In addition to the ‘Six Triple Eight’ receiving the 2021 Congressional Gold Medal, the nation’s highest civilian honor, in 2023 Fort Lee, Va. was officially renamed Fort Gregg-Adams in honor of Arthur Gregg and Charity Adams. Last June, the Dayton VA Medical Center renamed its women’s clinic the Lt. Col. Charity Adams-Earley Women’s Clinic.
Last August, U.S. Reps. Mike Turner, R-Dayton, and Joyce Beatty, D-Columbus, introduced a symbolic resolution encouraging the U.S. Postal Service to issue a commemorative stamp in honor of Charity, who has also been recognized by the National Postal Museum, National Women’s History Museum, Ohio Women’s Hall of Fame, Smithsonian Institute, and the South Carolina Black Hall of Fame.
The Dayton Branch NAACP instituted the Lt. Col. Charity Adams Earley Award of Excellence in 2023. A bust of her likeness is at a monument at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas as well.
Born Dec. 5, 1918 in Kittrell, North Carolina, she died Jan. 13, 2002, at the age of 83, in Dayton and was buried in Woodland Cemetery.
On Jan. 28, Wilberforce University announced the Charity Adams Earley Endowment, created by author Sandra Evers-Manly who has authored a children’s book, “Charity Adams: Commanding Officer of the 6888th.” Pre-orders of the book are available at www.seminspirationals.com. The university said the endowment provides “essential financial support, helping Wilberforce students overcome economic challenges and achieve their dreams.” Proceeds from Evers-Manly’s book will sustain the fund.
“This further builds on the Charity Adams Earley Scholarship Fund, established by her children,” Miller said.
Managed by her son, Stanley, in collaboration with the university’s Office of Institutional Advancement, the scholarship fund pledges $100,000 to assist students with educational and living expenses.
As renewed interest in the “Six Triple Eight” grows, Miller hopes the film’s cross-generational message strikes a chord.
“As families watch the movie at home, I’m hoping parents and grandparents are sharing with their children and grandchildren the history and value of how far Blacks have come. And yet, under the current political circumstance we find ourselves in, how much further we have to go.”
Credit: Bob Mahoney/Perry Well Films 2/Courtesy of Netflix
Credit: Bob Mahoney/Perry Well Films 2/Courtesy of Netflix
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