HAPPY 100TH BIRTHDAY Helen Esther Hurray

Born: May 20, 1908, in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Address: Has been a resident of Salem since 1911, when she moved here with her family.

Schooling: Graduated from Mount Marie Academy (now Canton Central Catholic High School) in 1927.

Employment: Worked as a registered nurse after earning a nursing degree in 1930 from St. Elizabeth Hospital School of Nursing in Youngstown. She cared for Salem area residents for more than 30 years at Salem Central Clinic and Salem City Hospital and was a private-duty nurse before retiring to care for her mother.

Service: During World War II, she served as a nurse at the Ravenna Arsenal, a U.S. Army ammunition factory.

Celebration: A family dinner party was hosted by her nephew, Marcus Farrell of New York City, on May 17 at Salem Golf Club and was attended by 30 guests, including her sister, Matilda Tolson of Salem, and a brother, Phillip Hurray of Akron.Also present were nieces and nephews and their spouses, who traveled from Florida, Michigan, New Jersey, Virginia, Wyoming and several Ohio towns for the occasion. The event included recollections of her life, an audio CD of music of her era, a sing-along, a DVD focusing on her life of service to others and a three-panel display of greetings and well-wishes from friends, relatives and such dignitaries as President George Bush, Gov. Ted Strickland and the Most Rev. George Murry, bishop of Youngstown Catholic Diocese.

Affiliations: She is a lifelong parishioner at St. Paul Church, where she was honored May 18 at a special Mass officiated by the Rev. Thomas Eisweirth.