Woman recalls her steel worker days

Florence Reed Owen is, in many ways, a typical grandma. She crochets colorful afghans, enjoys a good bingo game and loves her grandkids.

But there’s something that sets this 86-year-old Boardman woman apart from the rest: Reed Owens was among the Mahoning Valley’s first female steel workers.

“I’ve always liked a challenge and liked trying something new,” said Reed Owens, who speaks with frank friendliness. “When I heard the mills were hiring women, I thought, ‘Why not?’ It paid a lot more than being a waitress did in those days.”

“Those days” were the 1940s, when “Rosie the Riveter” posters encouraged women to fill jobs vacated by American men serving in World War II.

“All the boys were leaving, and the mills were in desperate need of help,” Reed Owens explained.

For the complete story, see page A1 of Sunday's Vindicator and Vindy.com.