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Submitted: 6/24/24 • Approved: 7/11/24 • Last Updated: 7/30/24 • R596772-G596772-S3
Feb 26, 1923 - Sept 12, 2009
*Daughter of Ernest F C Keifeste and Nellie Louise Kothmann of Mason, Texas
"Florence was the youngest of nine children and enjoyed her time with her large family raising cattle in the Texas hill country. Her first language was German and she learned to speak English in the 4th grade. They all spoke German at home and English in school.... (She) trained as a nurse at the Baptist Memorial Hospital School of Nursing in San Antonio, Texas. She graduated in 1938 as a RN, following in the footsteps of her five older sisters, all of whom graduated as nurses from the same school. Florence Blake had been a Registered Nurse six years when her fiancée was killed in World War II. Florence felt a deep and abiding love for her country. She decided to join the Army Nurse Corps during World War II and served from 1945-1946. Florence served stateside at Ft. Sam, Ft. Sill, and Ft. Bliss, tending to the solders injured in the European and Pacific theatres. Over the years, she would reflect quietly on the soldier's wounds and their courage, and the lingering battles they faced off the front lines. Those faces and lives shaped her career and she never forgot the need for dignity and respect for her patients, regardless of their injuries, rank in life, or potential for healing. When asked recently why she joined the armed services during World War II, she smiled and simply replied, 'I love my country very much.' After her discharge from the Army Nurse Corp, Florence moved back to Mason, Texas and worked in a physician's office. It was during this time, on a blind date, she met her husband to be, Oscar Blake. They were married in 1952 and moved to Corpus Christi, Texas, eventually settling in Roswell, New Mexico. They had two children.... "
Extracted from obituary published in San Antonio Express-News on September 15, 2009
Photo courtesy of Annette Shaw
Contributed on 6/24/24 by hawkinsdonna48
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Record #: 596772
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