Recently Hospice of Santa Cruz County’s social worker Nina Garcia and nurse Heather Richardson had the honor of presenting a former World War II nurse with a quilt of comfort and love. “She was smiling from ear to ear and proud (although a little shy) to show it off to her table mates. She looks so happy and pretty in pink.” shared Richardson.
Hinemoa "Jo" Ruskin is 93 yrs old and lives at Oak Tree Villa. She was a nurse in the Navy during WWII where she served both in France and the United States working at Field Hospital EVAC 106.
Jo’s son said her unit landed at Utah Beach one month after D-Day and followed the front across France and Germany.
When Jo was asked to describe her experiences she said she was in the "infantry that won the war" and was quite proud. " It was very cold and snowy, and I bunked with 5 other women in the same tent. The work was very rewarding, but very, very challenging, the experiences varied widely and there were too many."
Nina said, “She was very excited, and quite deserving! It is extremely difficult for her to speak, so the information she shared is very precious.”