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Betty Reid Soskin, Trailblazing National Park Ranger, Dies at 104

Her storytelling at Rosie the Riveter park elevated overlooked histories of Black Americans on the WWII home front.

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FILE - National Park Service Ranger Betty Reid Soskin smiles during an interview at the Rosie the Riveter World War II Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond, Calif., July 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Ben Margot, File)

Overview

  • Her family said she died peacefully at her Richmond, California, home on Dec. 21, attended by loved ones.
  • The cause of death was not released, and the family requested privacy with a public memorial to be announced later.
  • Soskin retired in 2022 at age 100 after becoming the nation’s oldest active National Park Service ranger.
  • She was instrumental in shaping the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front park to include segregation and Black workers’ experiences drawn from her own wartime service as a segregated union file clerk.
  • In lieu of flowers, the family asked for donations to Betty Reid Soskin Middle School and support for completing the film Sign My Name To Freedom.