WHITE BEAR LAKE - Of the more than 16 million who served in the military during World War II only 400,000 were women. One of those women was Ellie Butler.

A member of the WAVES -Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service - Butler served stateside distributing messages to the men in combat.

A native of Council Bluffs, Iowa, Butler attended Iowa State University and earned degrees in journalism and home economics.

She landed a job writing for the women's page at the Chicago Tribune. But as the war dragged on she said she felt compelled to devote herself to something more meaningful than writing about fashion and social events.

Butler learned of the WAVES - a women's only division of the Navy - on a poster on an "L" train. She enlisted in September 1942. Within two weeks she was training in Massachusetts.

After training she was stationed at a communications center in New York City. She coded, decoded and relayed messages to Naval personnel, many involving plotting ship positions or warning of enemy submarines. The codes were relatively simple to decipher for those who knew the key, she said.

Traditional day hours left ample time for the small-town girl to explore the big city. And her military service was rewarded with free admission to Broadway plays, museums, opera productions and other city landmarks.

"New York City went all out for its service people," she said. "I got to experience quite a lot."

In 1945 she was moved to the Glenview Naval Air Station near Chicago. Like New York, the communications operation was well-organized and relatively non-stressful, Butler said. Much of her leisure time was devoted to a new pastime: golf at a nearby course.

"I was very, very fortunate," she said of her military assignments. "It was a very worthwhile job ... and I had good people to work with."

The lieutenant stayed at the base until 1947 when she moved to Los Angeles and managed office functions for a manufacturing business owned by two fellow Iowa State graduates. She met her now husband, Bill Butler, at an L.A. reunion of Iowa State grads.

A former WAVES roommate brought the couple to Minnesota in 1951 with a job opportunity for Bill. They settled in Birchwood, had six children and Ellie worked as a substitute teacher in White Bear schools. They now live in White Bear Lake and have seven grandchildren.

Ellie, age 90, is active at First Presbyterian Church where she sings in the choir and helps with the rummage sales and other events. She also sings with the Silver Harmony Singers and volunteers monthly at the Neighbor Helping Neighbor store at Redeemer Lutheran Church.