World War II Veteran Florence “Flo” Gerrard turned 100 years old on Tuesday, June 24, and the American Legion Ira Weaver Post 121 and many others joined her at Stonehenge Senior Living to celebrate not only her birthday but also her selfless service to the nation.
In turning 100, Gerrard has joined an elite group of individuals, as there are only 37,000 centenarians in the United States today – about 0.01% of the population.
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Imagine living through World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy, Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the first steps on the moon, the fall of the Soviet Union, the invention of the internet, COVID, and now the possibility of peace in the Middle East.
Nancy Kunz, President of the American Legion Auxiliary Unit 121 in Blairsville, hosted the party.
“Flo is one of our members,” Kunz said. “She and her husband have a great past, always contributing to the military. They started the North Georgia Honor Guard. She is an amazing woman.
“We come and visit her and all the veterans here at Stonehenge each month. We thought there would be no better way to capture all of the good wishes than to come today and celebrate her birthday.”
Many attendees came to pay their respects, including at least 35 family members, and Gerrard remarked that the occasion was “overwhelming.”
“It’s too much; my heart is still beating, but it’s beating awfully fast,” said Gerrard, whose favorite birthday gift was a statuette of retired Braves third baseman Chipper Jones. “Baseball is my favorite game. I’ve watched it for over 35 years. I saw his first game and his last game.”
Speaking about her military past, Gerrard recounted her time in the Women’s Army Corps as a nurse caring for amputee patients down at McCloskey General Hospital in Waco, Texas. She joined when she was 19 and served on a ward with over 100 casualties.
“I took care of the amputees and taught them how to take care of themselves,” Gerrard said. “I taught them how to swim without an arm or leg.
“When I left the Army, I stayed home to be a wife and a mother. I raised three lovely girls. My favorite things in this life were raising my children and my world travels.”
Born Florence Margaret Ness, she was the daughter of Norwegian parents and spent much of her childhood in North Dakota. When she was 9, her parents sent Flo and her brother Bob to live with their grandparents in Proctor, Minnesota. Her father, a travelling preacher, wanted Flo to have stability in her schooling.
One of her fondest memories occurred when the Queen of England made a trip to Canada in 1939 and Flo was chosen by her Girl Scout Troop to present the queen with flowers. She also had the honor of holding the King’s coat, which was loaded with all sorts of medals.
Flo met her first husband Frank Ford while attending church in Chicago. He began wooing her immediately and they married. Since Frank was being deployed to Europe, they decided the best thing for Flo to do was to join up, prompting her service in the Women’s Army Corps.
The WAC was established to allow women to serve their country in non-combat roles within the U.S. Army. Over 150,000 women did just that, and their service freed up the men for combat.
Flo and Frank were very active in the American Legion, the Veterans of Foreign Wars and supported the Disabled American Veterans in Blairsville. Then in 1981, they started the North Georgia Honor Guard here.
The Honor Guard is comprised of volunteers from all service branches who provide Military Honors at funerals. Flo and Frank’s involvement eventually led to the building of the Holly Hill Cemetery on their land, the final resting place of many veterans. When Frank died in 1995, he and Flo had been married for 51 years.
“I’ve never been sorry that I joined the WACs, though my husband and I were separated for the first three years of our marriage,” Gerrard said. “The lessons I learned in the Army have helped me all through my life. I encourage any young woman to join the military.”
In the 30 years since her husband’s passing, Florence has traveled to 36 countries. She remarried and then became a widow once again, but that has not stopped her from living a rich and fulfilling life.
What are her secrets? She’s been an avid swimmer her entire life; she has never smoked; and she eats healthy food, organic when possible. And she has a sip of whiskey every night before bed: “My doctor prescribed that over 60 years ago!”
Flo has spent her life in service to others due to her “greatest wish” being to help other people, “and that’s why I say, from the bottom of my heart, if you have money and don’t use it for good, there’s no use having it.”
“I just want to say to people that have money – you can’t take it to Heaven. You should help people while you can,” she added.
To mark the 100th anniversary of her birth, the American Legion presented Flo with a banner containing 100 signed birthday cards commemorating an amazing woman and her amazing life.
