Surprise for Sister Ruth

Doctors, nurses and staff had laid on a surprise party to mark her retirement after 42 years, the last 10 of which have been at Fownhope.

Ruth began as a carer at Overton Grange nursing home in Ludlow in 1956, at the age of 16. At 18, she entered Herefordshire Nurse Training School and became a State Registered Nurse in 1961.

Her first post was as a theatre staff nurse at Hereford County Hospital.

In 1963, she began midwifery training in Cheltenham. After qualifying, it was a case of "on yer bike", for in those days midwives cycled to work with all their equipment, including cylinders of gas and oxygen.

Ruth returned to Hereford in a combined post of district nurse and midwife with her friend Margaret George.

Not long afterwards, she married and moved to Pantiles, Bridstow, near Ross, where she still lives.

Later, she was district nurse attached to Hillsborough and Pendeen surgery, near Ross. Then she was district nurse at Ross and took the district nurse diploma and family planning certificate and set up a continence clinic at Ross Hospital. She was the first nursing midwife in Herefordshire.

She continued as district nurse at Ross until 1995, when she moved to Fownhope Medical Centre.

A highlight of her career was in July 1998, when she met the Queen at a Buckingham Palace garden party to mark the 50th anniversary of the NHS.

She has two horses, sheep and lambs and is a keen gardener, so will have a busy retirement. She also intends to continue as part of the stand-by "nursing bank".

Ruth, who has two sons, John and Andrew, said she was "very thrilled" by the surprise party.