Nurses Week: Betty Kelly Gaffney

Betty Kelly (later Gaffney) was training as a nurse at Bellevue when she contracted tuberculosis. She was sent to Trudeau Sanatorium in 1947, first staying at Ludington Infirmary and then at Schiff Cottage. She left in 1949; she suffered a relapse and was treated with a lobectomy and thoracoplasty at home and recovered. Once she had fully regained her health, she went on to serve as a school nurse until she retired at age 84.

We are sad to share that Betty passed away in January of this year. We were honored to meet her when she came to visit the Sanatorium campus in August of 2021--the first time in 72 years. We are so happy to have met her and heard her story. Betty and her family donated photographs and her nursing cape and hat to the collection so that we can continue to share her memory. Betty's cap from Bellevue is one of the nursing artifacts on display this week in honor of nurses throughout Saranac Lake history.

Learn more about Betty on our wiki.

[Photograph of Betty Kelly on the steps of Baker Chapel, c. 1947. Photograph of Betty Gaffney standing in front of Baker Chapel, August 2021. Historic Saranac Lake Collection, 2022.9.6. Gift in memory of Betty Kelly Gaffney.]