WWII nurse marks her 100th birthday

By William K. Alcorn

alcorn@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

Ila Grace Emmitt Cochran, who turns 100 today, may not have done it all during her full and long life, but high on the list of things accomplished was a stint in the Army Nurse Corps during World War II.

Today, Ila celebrated reaching the century mark with family and friends at a party at the Youngstown Veterans Outpatient Clinic on Belmont Avenue, where she has been a patient for many years.

Ila was born Feb. 1, 1919, a daughter of Lester L. and Ruth B. Emmitt of Risingson, Ohio. She graduated from Lucas County Hospital School of Nursing in Toledo and worked five years at Fostoria City Hospital before enlisting May 19, 1943, in the Army with a rank of second lieutenant.

Ila served at several state-side installations before being sent to Liverpool, England, where she said nurses lived in Quonset Huts until the Battle of the Bulge concluded. After that, she was transferred to the 197th General Hospital in St. Quentin, France, and also served temporary duty at medical facilities at Swason, Nancy and Rheims in France.

After she was discharged from military duty in January 1946, with the rank of first lieutenant, she graduated from Ohio State University, where she met her future husband, James A. Cochran Jr., who took a job at Strouss Department Store in downtown Youngstown.

The couple was married Jan. 3, 1948. Ila was a nurse for many years at Southside and Northside hospitals in Youngstown.