Tributes have been paid to a woman who dedicated her life to nursing.
Edna Cullen, known as Ella, died on January 3 aged 89.
Ella was president of the Royal College of Nursing’s Cumbria branch.
As a trainee at Whitehaven Hospital, Ella looked after returned soldiers and men who had been prisoners of war in Japan.
After a break to get married and have her children Ellen, Robert, Susan, Lynne and Mark, she went back to nursing and qualified as a nurse in 1949.
She qualified in children’s nursing as well as an adult nursing and went on to become a senior nurse.
Ella joined the Royal College of Nursing in 1979 and spent more than 40 years as an activist, and many more as a nurse.
After retiring from the NHS aged 65 she worked in the independent sector, latterly as a charge nurse for Guardian Care Homes.
She was made honorary president of the RCN Cumbria Branch in 2009, in recognition of a lifetime’s service to the nursing profession and commitment to the RCN.
She would always lay a Remembrance Sunday wreath on behalf of the Royal College of Nursing Cumbria Branch.
A She was a regular attendee at the Royal College of Nursing Congress, its largest annual event. A spokesman said she was a fiercely outspoken advocate of many issues, and many members had fond memories of her.
She survived COVID in mid-2020, a feat she put down to not drinking or smoking.
She will be sorely missed by all who knew her.
A celebration of her life will be held at Distington Hall Crematorium on Friday January 14 at 2pm.
Ella’s family are asking for no flowers, but instead, those who wish to are invited to donate to the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal and Help for Heroes.
