Queen of the Marines
Only female member of American Legion Post 20
Esther Tillery joined the United States Marine Corps in 1961 at age 19. As a young woman eager for adventure, she saw the military as an opportunity to forge her own path in the world. “Being predominantly male, the women had no problems. They talk a lot now about harassment, but I don’t remember any of that when I was in.” She attributes this to a difference in generations, as well as the fact that the Marine Corps had separate barracks for men and women.
She recalls that the only substantial challenge at that time for women in the military was boot camp, which was only nine weeks, as opposed to 13 weeks for men.
After boot camp, Tillery was stationed at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina, where she worked in the education department administering exams such as the GED to Marines who hadn’t yet graduated. One vivid memory she has from her time there was the Cuban missile crisis, and she remembers going to bed the night before to a full barracks, only to wake up in the morning to find that all the men had mobilized silently in the middle of the night.
“They all just slipped away in the middle of the night. They didn’t make a sound,” she said.
Later In 1962, Tillery was transferred to Camp Smith in Honolulu, Hawaii and worked in the Command Planning Group, where she helped coordinate contingency plans in case of an attack on American soil.
In addition to her duties and enjoying the Hawaiian weather,
Tillery was afforded a special honor in 1963 in recognition of Armed Forces Week. It was a big event because of the large role the military played in Hawaii at the time, so a committee chose a representative from each branch of the service, and Tillery was selected as “Queen of the Marines” for the week’s events. She made appearances at dinners, luaus, engagements and TV spots, which were rare in 1963, she noted. On the Saturday of that week, they held an Armed Forces parade in downtown Honolulu, and she presided over the proceedings from her place of honor in the grandstands.
Tillery was discharged from the Marine Corps in 1964, and immediately assumed duties as the stay-at-home wife of husband Bill West, who was also a Marine. They met, married and began a family while enlisted, but life became more challenging for Tillery as a military wife.
One of those challenges was having to move frequently with young children. Tillery noted that in the 60’s, the military didn’t furnish base housing to the degree they do now, and when a Marine was deployed for combat, their family had to move off-base. Her husband Bill remained in active duty for several more years, and served four tours in Vietnam.
“Each time he went overseas, we had to move,” she said.
Although the logistics of being a military wife in the 60’s presented its challenges, Tillery says that her service as a Marine made her less apprehensive than the average military wife.
“I knew my husband’s capabilities, and I knew our military’s capabilities,” she said. After being away from her family for several years, Tillery moved to the Porterville area in 1978 to be closer to family, and has remained ever since.
Tillery is the only female member of American Legion Post 20 in Porterville, where she is embraced by her fellow Legion members. She does not feel she is treated differently because of her gender.
“I have a lot of brothers and they all have one sister,” said Tillery. “A Marine is a Marine.”
Tillery is also a member of Post 20’s military burial detail. She attends between 10 and 20 military funerals per month, and is frequently witness to one of our country’s most powerful symbolic gestures — the passing of the American flag to families of the deceased.
When asked by some if she is bothered by the somber nature of the detail, Tillery replies, “It’s an honor. How else can we pay our last respects as a nation to those who have given their life?”
Regarding the recent protests of the national anthem, Tillery is disappointed, but feels that many people have not witnessed firsthand the symbolic power of the flag and the national anthem in the way that she has.
“To me, people who have never been to a military funeral or visited the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Washington D.C., they have not experienced these things,” she said.
Tillery appreciates Porterville’s patriotism, but notes that even today, some people are very surprised when they find out that women are in the Marines. She recalls the first time she visited Monte Vista School as part of the Legion’s color guard for the school’s Veteran’s Day ceremony, and the students in attendance couldn’t believe there were women in the Marines. Her presence side by side with the other male Marines made such an impression on the students that now the school makes it a point to request the “lady Marine” member of the color guard for their events.
When she’s not busy with her Legion activities, Tillery enjoys dancing every Thursday night at the Porterville Veteran’s Memorial Building, to Jerry Hall and the High Sierras.
With no plans on slowing down at age 75, Esther Tillery has lived a life shaped by a love for her country, and fondly recalls the adventures her service as a Marine has made possible.
“It was fun. You either enjoy it [military service] or you hate it, but that’s life. I enjoyed it, and I still enjoy life,” she said. “I’m very proud of my service, and I’m very proud of the United States. I’ve had opportunities that I wouldn’t have had otherwise.”