The Tyler Perry-directed film The Six Triple Eight garnered more than 52 million views in the first four weeks of its release on Netflix in 2024. Among those who streamed the film was Stacy Brown, a woman from Virginia’s Hampton Roads area. She thought the movie was a lesson in history. Brown had no idea that the soldiers’ roster shown at the end revealed a secret her own mother, Elizabeth C. Moore-Barnes, had never told.
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According to News3 WTKR, Brown and her family had no clue that her mother, Moore-Barnes, ever served in the military — let alone that she was one of more than 800 women assigned to the only all-Black female battalion deployed overseas during World War II. That all changed when Brown’s daughter found her grandmother’s discharge papers while clearing her apartment following her death last December.
“Did you guys know Grandma was in the military?” Brown’s daughter asked her family by text message. Brown told the outlet that she and her family then discovered that Moore-Barnes, who attended Virginia State College and taught in the Norfolk Public School system for nearly four decades, enlisted in the Army in 1944. She was 21. Paperwork showed she served in the historic 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion, which was tasked with sorting through an enormous backlog of mail to help lift the spirits of U.S. troops. Moore-Barnes was honorably discharged as a corporal in 1946.
Reflecting on these revelations, Brown shared her emotional response. “I rewatched the movie, and it hit completely different,” she told News3 WTKR. “I walked up to the TV to watch the list of ladies’ names who were in that battalion and to see her name and know that it was there the whole time…it was amazing,” she said.
According to Brown, her mother, who was also a grandmother and a great-grandmother, had “an amazing life.” The outlet reported that the veteran, who lived to be 102, was a dedicated member of her church, which honored her posthumously for her legacy.
Moore-Barnes was known for her love of storytelling, yet she never once mentioned her military service. Looking back, Brown realized there were signs all along. “She was super organized,” Brown told the outlet. “If you got a card, there was always a letter included,” she added.
Now, Brown hopes to learn more about her mother’s experience by connecting with others who may have known her or served alongside her.
“I would love to talk to someone who could elaborate on that part of her life,” she told the outlet.
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