Fifty nurses have 'absolutely wonderful' reunion in Belfast 50 years after training together
Fifty nurses who started trained together in Belfast 50 years ago have come together for an “absolutely brilliant” reunion in the city.
Bangor nurse Margaret McAllister organised the reunion, with the help of friends, based on a photo of some 45 nurses who started nursing together in Belfast in 1974.
"It was absolutely brilliant," she told the News Letter. "The noise, the chatter, the smiles on everybody's faces, people recognizing each other that hadn't seen each other for maybe 47 years.
"Because once they finished training, they went off and did their own speciality.
"So they were also probably living out of nurses homes across Northern Ireland and lost contact with each other."
The reunion took place in Robinson's Bar bistro on Monday night in Belfast city centre.
"It was amazing. I was getting phone calls at midnight after the dinner. The party was still going on, but I'm afraid I was too tired to continue the party."
The most surprising thing for her was that everyone still recognised each other.
"Once you recognize the name, you recognize the face. You took 50 years off that face that was looking at you, and you could see the young person again."
"Most of them have retired but some are still working."
"Some came from Newry, Derry, Portglenone to attend - and one nurse came from Rathlin - she retired to the very day 50 years ago, just the day before the reunion."
"The general feedback was absolutely wonderful. People said they would never have done it themselves but that they had lost touch and they were just so happy to see each other again."
Margaret may have started nursing 50 years ago, but she is also a 21st century digital detective, using Facebook to track down many people in the photo.
"One girl I knew came from Dervock, but I knew she now lives in Scotland. So I went onto the Dervock Facebook page and asked if anyone knew her. Within minutes about 28 people replied with her address and phone number."
The detective work began with a photo of some 45 nurses in their graduation photo, after which invites went out to 52 women. Fifty of them made the dinner, with four coming from overseas – New Zealand, Liverpool, Edinburgh and London.
The inspiration for the event came from chatting with a friend over coffee in January.
"She said, 'Wouldn't it be lovely to see everybody again?' And I said, 'All right, leave it with me'."
Several friends came together to make it happen.
Margaret hopes that she has now passed the baton on to the next generation.
"I used to tell my daughter Emma all my stories about nursing - and it must have inspired her, because has now taken up the profession herself."