CPL, US Army, June Marie Drass Schutzberger

June Marie Drass Schutzberger attempted to enlist in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) during World War II but initially was rejected due to her heart problems. ¹ She persevered and eventually was accepted in September of 1943 on the condition that she would sign a waiver to indemnify the U.S. government against any subsequent problems with her heart. ¹ She was honorably discharged on February 28, 1945. ²

Drass was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Marie and Philip Drass. ³ She grew up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and attended Catholic girls’ schools through high school and attended the University of South Carolina in the late 1940s and early 1950s. ^{1, 4} She earned a master’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania. ¹ She married Harold Williams and had one son, but the couple subsequently divorced. ⁵

Following an honorable discharge from the military, Drass taught conversational English to Japanese high school teachers at Amerika House in Hiroshima. ¹ She also taught mathematics and English to non-commissioned offers in the U.S. Army so that they could attain the mandated educational level. ¹

Drass moved to Albuquerque from Japan in 1959 and married Henry Schutzberger in 1966. ^{1, 6, 7} She taught 6th grade at Montezuma Elementary School in Albuquerque for ten years and is remembered fondly by her students. ¹ She became the first certified teacher of the gifted in the state of New Mexico and was instrumental in developing the gifted program. ^{1, 8} Today the June Schutzberger Endowment Fund supports non-profits such as Doctors without Borders. ⁹ Her obituary stated that her deepest pleasures were the New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, world travel, duplicate bridge, and the beach, especially Clearwater Beach in Florida. ¹