Teresa Haschka, born Teresa McNeel, was born on December 24, 1918, in Missouri to Terese McNeel and Edgar McNeel. She was born while her father was serving in France during World War I. Tragically, he died in military service just weeks after her birth on February 3, 1919, from pneumonia resulting from a gunshot wound. Teresa was raised by her mother and grandmother before later living with her mother and stepfather, William Williamson. She spent her childhood in Missouri before relocating to Wisconsin during her school years. Medicine was a part of her family's history, as her maternal grandfather was also a physician, a legacy that Teresa would continue through her own distinguished medical career. 
 
She earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Mount Mary College in 1939 before receiving her medical degree from Marquette Medical School in February 1943. After completing her internship at Cincinnati General Hospital, Teresa was commissioned into the United States Army as a Medical Officer on July 6, 1944, at the age of 25. She attained the rank of Captain and served as an Army psychiatrist during World War II, spending much of her military service at Wakeman General Hospital at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, where she treated veterans returning home from the war. 
 
As one of the relatively few women physicians serving in the Army during World War II, Dr. McNeel was part of a pioneering generation of women who expanded opportunities for female physicians in military medicine. Her work caring for returning servicemembers came at a time when the psychological effects of war were only beginning to be understood, making her contributions especially significant in the evolving field of military psychiatry. By helping veterans navigate the emotional and psychological challenges of returning home, she played an important role in supporting their transition from military to civilian life. Teresa was honorably discharged from the Army on March 31, 1946, after nearly two years of military service. 
 
On June 18, 1948, Teresa married Dr. August J. Haschka, Jr., a fellow World War II veteran who served as a toxicologist in the China-India-Burma Theater before later becoming a Navy Medical Officer and physician. The couple welcomed two sons, August "Joe" Haschka III, born in 1949, and Michael T. Haschka, born in 1959. By 1950, she was working as a physician at a government mental hospital in Wisconsin before relocating to Southern California. Together they built both a family and parallel careers in medicine, at one point sharing an office in Pacific Palisades after August completed medical school. After joining the staff at Pacific Colony State Hospital in 1951, Teresa later also served at Camarillo State Hospital, while her husband established a private medical practice in Pacific Palisades. 
 
The Haschkas later made their home in Malibu, where they lived until tragedy struck in 1975 when Dr. August Haschka was killed in a bicycle accident at Zuma Beach. Teresa lived another forty years following his death, eventually settling in Seal Beach, California. She passed away on June 7, 2015, at the age of 96. Having dedicated her life to caring for both veterans and civilians, Teresa leaves behind a legacy of compassion, resilience, and service. As one of the pioneering women physicians who served in the United States Army during World War II, her career helped demonstrate the invaluable contributions women could make in military medicine and mental health care. Today, she is buried beside her husband at Los Angeles National Cemetery, where their shared legacy of military service and dedication to medicine continues to be honored. 
 
This biography was researched and written by students as part of the Digital Veterans Legacy Project at Loyola Marymount University, funded by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Cemetery Administration. 
 

TERESA LEE HASCHKA

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