Attached to the US Army Air Forces, the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) was a women’s pilot organization during World War II. Members of the WASP were the first women to fly American military aircraft. The female pilots flew noncombat stateside missions, including testing aircraft and transporting military aircraft from factories to ports of embarkation.

In 2009, the WASP received the Congressional Gold Medal for their pioneering military service during the war. This replica medal was donated in honor of Edna “Kitty” Hines Bishop (1916-2008) of Hattiesburg, Mississippi. She served as a member of the WASP, earning her wings in 1944.