Alma Marie Ferris, 92, died Nov. 8, 2012, at her home in Seal Beach, CA.

She was cremated and her ashes interred in the National Cemetery for Veterans in Riverside, CA.

She was born Aug. 2, 1920, in Mound, Coryell County, Texas, the first of nine children born to S.W. (Dick) and Bertha Anderson Blanchard. She attended Mound and Gatesville schools. Upon graduating in 1937, she attended Port Arthur College and was employed by Texaco until her enlistment in the Women’s Army Corps in March 1943. After basic training, she was assigned as a secretary to intelligence officers in public relations for WAC publicity. In May 1944, Sgt. Blanchard was transferred to Europe where she served in General Eisenhower’s headquarters. After D-Day, the unit was transferred to France until after the Battle of the Bulge when the unit went to Germany early in 1945. She served with General Patton’s headquarters until her discharge in 1945. She worked as a civil service employee until she returned to the U.S. in February 1946. In Germany, she married Stanley Sweatt and they had five children, Stanley, Nancy, Steven and twins, Richard and James. She later married Dr. Robert Ferris. She was a devout member of the Church of Christ and an active member of the VFW.

She was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Robert Ferris in 1997; brother, Hardy Blanchard in March 2010; and sister, Don Webb in November 2010.

Survivors include her five children; brothers, Carl Blanchard of Temple and Fred Blanchard of Waco; sisters, Alpha Lee Holcomb of Friendswood, Wyona Miller of Denver, CO, and Sue Magee and Patsy Hare, both of Gatesville; six grandchildren; and five great-grandchildren.