(1914-2009)
Božena Hauserová, one of the best spies of World War II, was the first Czech woman to serve in the U.S. Army. She started her career as a lawyer with Bata Company, where she met her husband Mr Lauwers, an American. Already as Barbara Lauwers, she participated in one of the most successful acts of psychological warfare, carried out by OSS, the American intelligence service. During the Operation Sauerkraut, she contributed to the infiltration of Hitler’s army by German prisoners held in Italy in 1944. Her bravery was recognized by the award of a high American military decoration, the Bronze Star. After the war, she returned to Czechoslovakia, but the emergence of the communist regime made her move to the United States. She worked, among other jobs, as a presenter for the Voice of America. She also worked in Czech expatriate associations and after 1968, she was helping Czechoslovaks fleeing their country, occupied by Soviet Army. She died on 16 August 2009 at the age of 95. She is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.