I decided to search Newspapers.com for any references to Aunt Elwy in West Palm Beach. I was delighted to find so many articles that captured her role as head nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital, along with her activities as district president and a delegate at the state nursing conventions. There were also articles spanning the years in recognition of her 15-year and 25-year service awards.
My favorite discovery was the interview and photo honoring her 30-year service award. For any family member interested in learning more about Elwy LaSenius Rousseau’s nursing career, here is a link to that interview:
Article from May 9, 1971 The Palm Beach Post (West Palm Beach, Florida)
This interview might also be interesting for anyone in nursing today. In her 1971 interview, she gave an overview of how nursing had changed from the time she started in 1926. What a wonderful historical perspective for comparison with nursing today.
I also didn’t realize Elwy’s career began in 1926. That was the year her niece, Joy Eloise Washburn (my mother) was born. Elwy also mentioned in the article that she took a 15-year sabbatical to raise her daughter, my mom’s cousin Frances Louise Rousseau.
Exploring Generations 