Betty Reid Soskin, nation's oldest park ranger, has died. She was 104

Betty Reid Soskin , who retired as the nation’s oldest park ranger, died peacefully at her home in Richmond Sunday morning, her daughter announced on Facebook. She was 104. Betty Reid Soskin attended the 25-year celebration of the Rosie the Riveter park in Richmond last March. Credit: David Buechner for Richmondside Betty Reid Soskin greeted well-wishers at her 104th birthday party at Betty Reid Soskin Middle School in El Sobrante. Credit: Jana Kadah/Richmondside Betty Reid Soskin at the Rosie the Riveter national park in Richmond. Credit: Associated Press/file The post said she was with her family when she passed away. “She led a fully packed life and was ready to leave,” they wrote. A more formal obituary has since been posted . Details about a public memorial will be announced later. In lieu of flowers mourners are invited to show their love and respect for Soskin by making donations to her namesake school, Betty Reid Soskin Middle School, where she recently celebrated her birthday with a joyous gathering among admiring children and family members who sang her the birthday song and showered her with letters and cards. Supporters can also support an effort to finish a documentary film, “Sign My Name To Freedom,” about her journey to reclaim her own lost music that she had been too afraid to share. It’s scheduled to be released in 2026. (Her memoir , published in 2018, is of the same name.) Her story is also told in the film “ No Time to Waste ,” produced in association with the Rosie the Riveter Trust. Word of her passing spread quickly on Sunday afternoon. Within 55 minutes of the announcement being posted, more than 300 people had paid their respects online, with the number later swelling to 500. Among the comments: She was a blessing to multitudes. A great one to always remember!! A national treasure . Oh, such a great spirit and wonderful author, speaker, and inspiration to so many people . Hopefully we can carry on with her insistence to have the truth known . Reid Soskin is perhaps most famous for her 15 years of national park service, where she told visitors the stories of unsung marginalized World War II workers at the Rosie the Riveter/WWII Home Front National Historical Park in Richmond. But many might not know that before that she was also involved in the park’s development, helping to ensure that the stories that were told fairly represented all of the workers’ experiences. Her park service earned her a presidential coin from President Barack Obama. The Rosie the Riveter Trust, which is the nonprofit that supports the park, issued a statement by email, calling her a “foundational voice” in the park’s creation and mission. “Betty Reid Soskin captivated visitors at the Rosie the Riveter visitor center,” said Michelle Fadelli, President of Rosie the Riveter Trust, in the statement. “As a park ranger, Betty made history real, because she lived it. She made history matter, because she told the truth....

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