22-04-2025
Thank You for Your Service, Sarah Trail
MOORE, S.C. (WSPA) – It wasn't an easy life for Sarah Trail
'I remember going to school and putting cardboard in my shoes,' Trail told 7NEWS. 'Because they were so worn out.'
Her mom came from the mills, and her dad was a farmer.
'We lived out in the country, and we had a horse and pigs and chickens,' Trail said. 'We had to take care of them.'
Trail said one of her teachers saw potential in her and suggested she go to college.
'At the time, it was the only outlet for me,' Trail shared. 'We didn't have a telephone and I couldn't drive. I didn't have a car, and I couldn't go to any interviews.'
So she followed that potential right to a recruiter.
'There had been a man, you know, come around trying to get people signed up,' Trail explained. 'And so I'd been thinking about it.'
Trail enlisted in the Women's Army Corps.
She said she knew it was a gateway to becoming a nurse.
'I learned a lot about medical care, and it helped me a whole lot when I was in nursing school,' Trail said. 'I was advanced to what all the other girls were because I was exposed to that when I was in the military.'
Which, for Trail, was a two-year contract in Texas.
'In training, you learned to shoot a gun. You learn to march,' said Trail.
It was during the Vietnam War era. Trail said she worked as a nurse in general practice, typically helping families of soldiers fighting in the war.
'Colds, sore throats,' she said. 'In the outpatient clinic, sometimes I'd go in there and fill in. Give them shots for them to go overseas.'
Sure enough, that would open the door for Trail to continue her passion in the Upstate at Spartanburg Regional.
Trail would spend 35 years there, until she'd eventually retire.
'You have to have a lot of compassion and a lot of stamina,' Trail said when describing what it takes to be a nurse. 'Be in good health and really desire to help people.'
And drive, Trail added.
It's something that came naturally to Trail as she set out to provide a life for herself.
'I didn't make the best or most money at the time, but I saved where I could,' she said. 'I bought the house by myself. I educated my son.'
Trail said nowadays it's a bit quieter.
But she's at peace with it.
'I like to garden and grow flowers. I do like to read a lot,' she shared. 'I accomplished a lot in life.'
And keeping herself company with her doggie, Miss Dolly.
'When I go from one room to another, she goes with me.'
Sarah Trail, thank you for your service.
To nominate a veteran like Sarah Trail to be featured in our Thank You for Your Service series, click here.
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