FARMINGTON - The battlefields were far away in the 1940s, but caution was necessary as windows were darkened at night and people volunteered to watch for planes flying over Maine.

Sitting on Norton Hill in Strong and watching for those planes were Theone (Sue) Woodcock and Viola Burdin, who decided they would do more than just watch for planes. They joined the Marines, serving, according to Woodcock, during 1944 and 1945.

One impact of Woodcock's decision played out last fall when her granddaughter, Megan Woodcock, ran a 26-mile Marine marathon in Washington, D.C., sporting a shirt with a picture of "Nana Sue" in her uniform.

A graduate of Mt. Blue High School and the University of Maine at Farmington who played basketball and soccer, she started training for the marathon last spring.

The 12,000 runners followed a course that ended at the Iwo Jima Memorial. Thousands lined the streets to cheer, she said, including her own fans from Maine.

The daughter of Chandler and Charlie Woodcock of Farmington finished in four hours and 21 minutes, her mother, fiancee, future sister-in-law and friends there to congratulate her.

The Westbrook resident works as a health educator for the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Augusta.

Her grandmother Woodcock worked in the transportation area for the Aviation Ground Officers School in Quantico, Va., during her military stint. Sue said she liked the military service and thinks all young people should join because it teaches responsibility, keeps them healthy and provides lifelong friendships.

At age 21, her parents tried to talk her out of the two-year commitment, Sue Woodcock said. Being away from home over the holidays caused a little homesickness, but those hours spent sitting on a hill in Strong gave herself and her friend plenty of time to think, she added.