Juanita (Goold) Wilke was born in Baraboo, Wisconsin in August 20, 1908. She was raised with her younger brother in Baraboo by parents of French and English backgrounds. She was graduated from Baraboo High School and moved with her family to Madison, Wisconsin. She was graduated from the University of Wisconsin in 1930 with a degree in history. She taught school in Grant County before moving back to Madison to work in the Wisconsin State Unemployment Compensation office in 1937. During the early years of the war, Ms. Wilke volunteered to attend dances at Truax Field. In March of 1943, she volunteered to join the Women's Auxiliary Army Corps (WAACS). She traveled to Milwaukee, Wisconsin for her physical, and then was sent first to Oglethorpe, Georgia, for boot camp. She attended Officer Candidates (OC) School in Des Moines, Iowa for about seven weeks, and was graduated on May 23, 1943. The army sent her to a WAAC camp in Rockford, Illinois where she received training from the officer who was in charge. She returned to Des Moines for Intermediate Officer's School and then was sent back to Fort Oglethorpe. From Fort Oglethorpe, she was sent first to Florida, then to New Jersey, then Scotland, before arriving in Oxford to attend cryptographic school (Oxford Radio School) for a month. At this time, she was at the rank of second lieutenant in the Allied Expeditionary Air Force. After cryptographic school, she was sent to London where she worked at the underground command headquarters and lived in the Park Lane Hotel. She also worked for the Dutch Minister of Agriculture to England at the British headquarters in Stanmore.

In September of 1944, Ms. Wilke was sent to northern France just outside of Mont St. Michel. She was stationed in the gardens of Versailles. She was then sent to Heidelberg and was stationed there until V-E Day when she was transferred to Reims. She worked for General Herbert Thatcher until November of 1945. Ms. Wilke returned to Madison and her job at the Unemployment Compensation office. She met her husband, Gerald Wilke, shortly after returning home. She retired from her job in 1975 and the couple has remained active in local sports and other activities.

Ms. Wilke begins by discussing her reactions to the attack on Pearl Harbor. She describes her work at the Unemployment Compensation Office and the changes that occurred there as a result of the war. She talks about teaching in Grant County before working in Madison. She describes the job requirements at the Unemployment Compensation Office. Ms. Wilke goes on to discuss the dances at Truax Field at the beginning of the war. She describes her reasons for enlisting in the WAACS (Women's Auxiliary Army Corps). She talks about her mother's reaction to her decision. She describes her physical in Milwaukee and receiving her first orders to report to Fort Oglethorpe for basic training. She describes the living conditions in what was previously a men's camp. She then describes being sent to OC (Officer Candidates) School in Des Moines and the training she received there. She discusses her stay at a WAAC camp in Rockford and returning to Des Moines for Intermediate Officer School. She talks about becoming suspicious about what she was being trained for. Ms. Wilke then talks about being sent back to Oglethorpe. She discusses being sent to Florida and learning how to swim in the ocean and having to fill out a will and send many of her belongings home. She then describes being sent to New Jersey and having one night in New York City before being sent overseas.

Ms. Wilke describes her trip overseas on the Queen Mary, and then her journey to Oxford via Scotland. She discusses attending cryptographic school (Oxford Radio School) as a second lieutenant and how this felt. She then talks about working at an underground command headquarters in London. She describes the air raids and the working conditions she experienced while living in London. She also describes working for the Dutch Minister of Agriculture in England at the British headquarters in Stanmore, and the bombing raids there. She describes their free time in London. She talks about the relations between the Americans, Canadians, and English servicemen and women. Ms. Wilke describes her job, and celebrating Christmas away from home. She talks about the living conditions in London during the war, and her impressions of the English. She goes on to discuss being sent to northern France after D-Day and being stationed just outside Mont St. Michel in the gardens of Versailles. She discusses being sent to Heidelberg and the conditions she witnessed in the conquered city. She describes being sent to Reims after V-E Day to work for General Herbert Thatcher. Ms. Wilke describes Heidelberg and the closeness of the Germans.

Ms. Wilke describes her free time spent in Wiesbaden and at the Chambourg Castle, outside of Frankfurt. She talks about not being able to follow the progress of the war and being unaware of the concentration camps until after the war. She describes her husband's service in North Africa during the war. She talks about meeting him when she returned to work at the Unemployment Compensation office after the war, and why they got married. She describes her reactions towards to death of President Roosevelt and the V-E Day celebrations. She talks about her reaction to the dropping of the atomic bombs and the reputation of the WACS during the war. She discusses how proud she was to make the rank of captain at the end of the war and how attitudes changed towards her as a result of her enlistment. She describes the difficulty of finding places to live after she got married and about the social life in Madison. She ends by discussing her feelings about her time in Europe during the war.