Claire Sirois Smart

December 19, 1923 - January 19, 1991

Claire's family reports: 

Mom was admitted to the Cadet Nurse Corps July 1, 1943, and attended nursing school at Notre Dame de Lourdes Hospital School of Nursing in Manchester, New Hampshire, graduating in February of 1945. She was unable to attend her class graduation in September of the same year as she had joined the Army at Fort Devins in July and by September was serving at Camp Edwards, Massachusetts. She served as General Duty Nurse in U.S. for about 1 1/2 years in Massachusetts as well as Oliver General Hospital in Augusta, Georgia. December 1946 found her in Caserta, Italy. She worked at the 61st Station Hospital as well as the 317th Station Hospital, serving in Europe for approximately 1 1/2 years. Her last assignment was accompanying U.S. dependents, many of whom were pregnant, by ship back to the U.S. Her military service ended in May 1948 at Kilmer, New Jersey. She was awarded the American Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, and the Meritorious Unit Plaque.

She went on to marry, raise four children, then went back to nursing at the Sepulveda V.A. Hospital in California. Sadly, we lost her to Leukemia in January 1991.