5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) celebrates Women’s History Month by honoring Martha “Col. Maggie” Raye who served with 5th SFG(A) in Vietnam as a nurse. Raye also traveled to other bases with the United States Organization (USO)
Martha was born August 27, 1916 and died October 14, 1994. She is the only woman buried in the Special Forces section of the cemetery at Fort Bragg, N.C.. Martha was an Honorary Member of the Green Berets and was granted the Honorary rank of LTC (Lieutenant Colonel) by President Lyndon Johnson. President Clinton presented Martha Raye with the “Presidential Medal of Freedom” in 1993. Raye was a singer, actress, and comedienne who began supporting troops in the USO during World War II. However, in Vietman she formed a lifelong relationship with the Green Berets. She was a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve Nurses Corp and was a registered nurse before her career in entertainment.