Courtesy photo
SCARBOROUGH — Scarborough Terrace resident Nancy Friis-Hansen turned 100 on May 6, and to celebrate, the facility held a surprise birthday party for her where she was surrounded by family and friends.
“My daughter and her husband arrived at about 1:30 p.m. today,” Friis-Hansen said the day of the celebration, “and I thought it was kind of funny (they) were coming because we were going to have dinner tomorrow night. She said ‘you must get ready to go to an affair this afternoon at 2 p.m.’ So, we went over, and it was such a wonderful surprise all the residents were there, and the planners of the affair, of course, were there, and a musician that was there to entertain us.”
Friis-Hansen was born on May 7, 1922, and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts. She went to school in Springfield, Massachusetts and graduated from high school in 1940. She then went into nursing training at the Springfield Hospital School of Nursing and graduated in 1945.
“After graduation, I was commissioned as second lieutenant in the United States Army Nurse Corp,” said Friis-Hansen. “It was a good experience and I enjoyed being there. I was stationed first in 1948. After I was commissioned, I went to Fort Bragg in North Carolina and I was there for two years and then I was assigned to Washington, D.C. to the Walter Reed Medical Center and that is where I was for about three years.”
During her Army career, Friis-Hansen met many influential leaders such as the President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s wife, Mamie.
“I had seen him at close range, but I met his wife in person,” Friis-Hansen said. “I was on this special committee that was to arrange a luncheon for her, and so as a member of the committee, I was there when she arrived and helped to prepare the program that was produced that day. She was lovely and it was wonderful to see her.”
Later, Friis-Hansen went to George Washington University in Washington, D.C., under the GI Bill. The first job she had was with the United States National Head Quarters for the Chamber of Commerce . They requested a registered nurse be on the staff and Friis-Hansen was chosen for the position; she remained in that job for 12 years and worked on personnel issues. From there, she was selected for the position of director of personnel by a supermarket company in Worcester, Massachusetts. She worked with at the company until she retired at the age of 65 in 1989.
She moved to Scarborough Terrace in 2016 with her husband, who is deceased.
Friis-Hansen’s surprise celebration included balloons, decorations, live music, and some of her personal favorite treats like chocolate and wine.
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