Mary Johnston
Mary Johnston turned 100 years old on January 11, celebrating with her direct family at home, while close relatives elsewhere, including the United States, joined via Zoom due to COVID precautions and travel restrictions.
Born January 11, 1921 in Killucan, Ireland as the oldest of six children, Mary was raised and schooled in Armagh while living with her uncle. As an adult, she went to Belfast City Hospital to train for nursing in the late 1930’s. She then qualified for midwifery in Glasgow in the years following.
She returned to Belfast to become a senior nurse, overseeing the midwife’s unit. In August 1949, she married Norman Johnston and moved to Whiteabbey where she continues to live to this day. Three years later, she had her first child, Valerie, followed two years later by her second child, Len.