They were called “The Melody Maids” and they travelled the world during wartime to bring harmony, and heart, to our fighting troops.
AUSTIN, Texas — For many today, it may be hard to believe that at one time, a group of teenage girls from Texas travelled to war zones around the world to sing for U.S. military troops. Such was the life of a Melody Maid.
For many soldiers and sailors, they were known as America’s singing sweethearts, a group of talented teenaged girls from Beaumont who lifted spirits across the globe during World War II and beyond.
The Melody Maids were founded in 1942 by Beaumont music teacher Eloise Milam. What began as a small group of high school singers quickly grew into an international phenomenon. Over the next three decades until 1972, more than 1,500 young women became Melody Maids, traveling to over 20 countries to entertain U.S. troops and communities abroad.
Now, their story is being told in a new documentary, “The Melody Maids Movie.” The film features never-before-seen footage, letters home and interviews with surviving members in order to preserve a legacy that stretched around the globe.
“The Melody Maids did it from their heart expecting nothing in return,” the film’s executive producer and codirector, Kai Jai Conner, said. “And they were just teenage girls.”
Conner said she has always had a close connection to the Melody Maids story. Long before she was born, her mother was a Melody Maid.
From Europe to the Pacific, the young singers performed thousands of shows – often in makeshift stages and military camps – bringing a bit of home to those far from it.
“I’m fascinated by the way this all went down,” Doug Forrest, codirector, producer and writer for the movie, said. “Eloise Milam would oftentimes take these trips to military bases around the world without other chaperones, just by herself with upwards of 26 girls.”
Conner said the girls did it for their love of America.
“They knew what the military had sacrificed for us, all of us, for our country,” Conner said. “They loved their country, and to me, that legacy is almost the most important thing about their history.”
Because there were no sound recordings of the Melody Maids singing, the filmmakers recruited girls’ choirs from Austin’s McCallum and Westlake high schools to record the soundtrack for the film.
The documentary was accepted for screening at the Round Top Film Festival, where it will premiere on Nov. 8.
It’s a heartwarming look at how a group of Beaumont teens used their voices to make history – and harmony – around the world.