Roberta Wells, from just outside Grand Rapids Michigan, was born March 7, 1922. Wells was one of the first to join the Women Marines during World War II, then was part of the first group of Women Marines to be sent overseas. Wells and her fellow Women Marines were stationed on a base in Honolulu, Hawaii from 1944 to 1945. During her service, Wells worked in a recruitment office, recruiting other women to join the service. Later, she moved to working in the Public Relations office, where part of her job was developing photographs for approval by the Marine Corps. During her time at the Public Relations office, Wells developed the iconic “Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima” photograph. Once Wells and Leidner moved to Madison, Wells became active in local politics, urging community members to become involved and eventually getting elected to local government boards. Her main focus while serving in office was the improvement of public transportation options for Madison and Dane County. Roberta Wells Leidner died July 25, 2004 and is buried at the River Bend Cemetery in Grandville, Michigan.
Milton Leidner was born in New York, New York in 1921. He enlisted during World War II in the 8th Air Force as an Instrument Specialist. Leidner and Wells met after World War II when both were attending Olivet College in Michigan. Later, they married and moved to Madison to attend the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
