Vira (Armstrong) Lane

Born in Canada to her Canadian father, Guy W. Armstrong, and Irish mother Gladys E. Killick Armstrong, she was their third child, joining older brother Guy Lionel, and sister Mary Norma. They were surrounded by a large Armstrong clan in Toronto, all who descended from the famous Canadian artist and photographer William Armstrong, Vira’s great, great, grandfather. Much of her early life was spent at the Armstrong family home on Toronto Island, where the days were spent playing on the beach with many cousins, the family dog ‘Nick’ and other relatives.

When she was 8, her father, due to severe health problems as a result being a POW in Germany in WWI, was forced to move his family to a milder climate and they moved to Mandeville, Jamaica. She attended the Brampton Boarding School for Girls during the week and went home on the weekends. At the age of 15, Vira was sent to England to finish her education, living with her Godmother, attending the Bournemouth School for Girls, and afterwards a secretarial school. As soon as she reached the required age of 19, she began Florence Nightingale Nurse’s training at St. Thomas’ Hospital in London, England. What should have been a normal course-taking, lecture attending, traditional education, soon changed into the experience that she never expected and no one could have foreseen. Great Britain declared war against Germany in 1939 and she soon found herself right in the cross hairs of the London Blitz, navigating bombed out streets and buildings, sneaking out in blacked out streets after curfew (on occasion when off duty) and dodging into bomb shelters when the alarms went off all while attending training classes and caring for the injured when on duty. She never spoke in great detail of her experiences during that time, but many years later, after the US was attacked by terrorists in 2001, she remarked that seeing all the terrible images on television brought back many images of those dangerous and deadly days during WWII.

When her training was complete, Vira enlisted in the Princess Mary’s Royal Air Force Nursing Service, serving in different hospitals in the UK, Ely Hospital in Ely, Halton Hospital in Halton, and a joint Army/Navy/Air Force Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland. One of our many cherished photos of Vira is of her in her uniform, head held high, and striding confidently in a Victory Parade in London. Only a few years ago did we discover letters she had saved all these years from grateful patients who wanted to thank her, and contributed their recovery to her loving hands and encouragement. Many of the letters had a common theme: “Nurse Vira and her smile would light up the ward, she gave us hope”. “She was our favorite”.

After the war, she left the Nursing Service, and, looking for a new adventure, decided to take her nursing skills to Oslo, Norway, where she knew no one, and did not speak the language. Somehow, she managed to pick up enough of the language to carry out her duties, make friends, and develop a lifelong love of skiing! Even though she didn’t speak Norwegian, her encouraging smile and positive attitude apparently made quite an impression on many of the staff and patients who nicknamed her “Smiley”. Another favorite picture and story of Vira, is of her in her mid-fifties, stepping into her decades old skiing outfit, (which still fit perfectly) and going skiing with her son, when visiting him in Utah. She did beautifully, only later admitting to us that she had forgotten how to stop!

In 1949, Vira joined her parents and sailed to the US to visit her older sister who had already immigrated to the US having met and married an American G.I. during the war. They sailed on the Queen Mary and planned to stay several months. As it turned out, her parents did return home, but Vira stayed, having found a nursing position at Blessing Hospital in Quincy, Illinois. This could also have been because she had met the man she would marry and spend the rest of her life with, Buford ‘Bill’ Lane, who was also working at Blessing Hospital. What an unlikely pair! Vira, from a heralded British family, with long traceable family roots, and a very British sense of what was proper and what was not, met Buford, a good old southern boy from a hard scrabble, God fearing, hard-labor working line of Lane’s. Whatever the differences and attractions there were, they married in 1951, and were inseparable and completely devoted to each other for the next 69 years.

After 15 years of marriage to Bill and living in the US, Vira decided it was time to become a US citizen. Bill, and their children Phillip, Carol and Diane were present when Vira swore her oath of Allegiance to the US. Her petition for Naturalization was granted on November 10th, 1966. 54 years to the day of this writing!

Bill was in the Army & shortly after their marriage in 1951 in Illinois he was reassigned to Marysville, California. There, their first child, Phillip was born. Up until a few months before giving birth, Vira again worked as a nurse at Rideout Hospital in Yuba City, California. Bill was discharged from the Army and soon after their son was born, they went to San Diego to visit other family. They loved it there and decided to move there themselves. Shortly after their move, their 2nd child, a daughter they named Carol was born. Their first home in San Diego was a trailer park in El Cajon, then a small house in Spring Valley. Then, after Bill was hired by the San Diego Sheriff’s Dept. as a Deputy Sheriff, they bought a home in a brand-new developing neighborhood in Kearny Mesa. While waiting for their new home to be completed, Vira gave birth to their 3rd child, Diane. They moved into their new home in June of 1958, and there they stayed until 2017 when failing health necessitated their move to an assisted living facility.

Throughout the years of living in Kearny Mesa, they owned and operated several businesses, one being San Diego Refrigeration, which was renamed Charger’s Appliance as a nod to San Diego’s beloved football team. Many people still recall the TV advertisements they made promoting their business with Vira as the spokesman. Their love of travel began with the many incentive trips they won through their business days and after their retirement in 1975 they began travelling the world in earnest, many times returning to England to visit her family and old friends and fellow wartime nurses. For many years, they travelled in a motor home all over Canada and the US. No one was surprised to hear that no matter where they were, they always made a point to pull off the freeway, or stop where ever they were to enjoy the very British ritual of “‘tea-time’” at 3pm. Anyone who remembers Vira, knows that this was a mainstay in her life, and there was a strict method in how the tea was to be prepared. “Always take the teapot to the kettle! Never take the kettle to the teapot!” was her famous instructive and every one of her children, and grandchildren know that well. No tea bags allowed, loose leaf tea only, water boiled for the exact amount of time, tea pot ‘prepped’ with hot water before adding the leaves and more hot water, timer set to the exact number of minutes required to produce the perfectly brewed tea, and always, always, a few sweets to nibble on with the tea! When they were at home, everyone knew the best time to stop by for impromptu visit was to join them at their home at 3 for tea time.

In 1968, Vira and Bill purchased a cabin at the Al Bahr Shriner’s Camp in Mt. Laguna. The family and many of their extended family and friends spent many happy hours there, which always included a brisk walk, perhaps better described as a ‘march’, with everyone trying to keep up with Vira’s British no nonsense pace. She outwalked us all, all the while keeping a lively conversation going while everyone else struggled to keep up and to catch their breath!

Vira’s kids, (and later her grandkids) all her family and friends, saw her enthusiasm every day. She was always ready and eager for any activity suggested. Grannie was always up for a camping trip, road trip to see family, a visit to the beach or zoo or just a daily walk.

One of Vira’s proudest achievements after her retirement was her volunteer work for the San Diego Maritime Museum and the Star of India. She trained and eventually became a docent conducting many tour groups on the ship and was thrilled to be invited to join the crew when the Star sailed for the first time in many years. One of the most memorable tours she gave was when her granddaughter Jackie’s class travelled by train from Orange County to San Diego and Vira conducted the class on a tour of the Star.

Whether travelling or at home, Vira could often be found with her knitting needles and a bag full of yarn and patterns for her current projects. Over the years she produced countless sweaters, blankets and other items for everyone in her family. As she grew older and her memory started slipping, she found it harder and harder to follow the directions and finally was forced to give up knitting. But before she quit, she made sure she had completed a baby’s blanket for each one of her grandchildren to have should they ever have children of their own.

In the early 80’s, Vira’s youngest daughter Diane began having serious health issues and it was determined that she would need a liver transplant to survive. True to form, Vira moved her daughter and two grandchildren in with her & Bill and relied upon her nursing skills to care for Diane while she awaited a transplant, and then nursed her back to health afterwards. It was a job that continued through the years as Diane had many health crises over the years. Sadly, Diane finally lost her battle with liver disease in 2008, but her life was extended in no small measure to the care she received from her mother. Vira mourned her death deeply, but never let her loss change her positive attitude.

Vira attended First United Methodist Church of San Diego and really loved being a part of the Koinonia group. As she got older, it began to be difficult for her to attend, and she had to stop going.

In 2017, when memory and health issues necessitated both Vira and Bill needing more help with daily activities, they moved to Belmont Village Assisted Living in Cardiff. Still together and still watching out for each other. Vira loved attending all the activities offered at Belmont Village and made friends with staff and other residents alike. Bill was always there to prod her memory or reassure her when she got confused. Up until the end she always made sure they were taking proper care of her husband, and constantly reminded everyone, she was a nurse and it was her responsibility to care for her husband! She always had a smile on her face, a willingness to participate in every activity offered to her, a desire to help, and everyone at Belmont Village, staff and residents alike, loved her.

This last year, both Bill and Vira were beginning to really slow down. Bill had a stroke and was placed in Hospice care, still at Belmont Village, and still sharing a room with Vira. Vira resumed her nursing duties watching over him, often leaving her nightly routine of watching TV in to push her walker back to the room to check on Bill.

One day her son Phil asked about her outlook on life. “As I video recorded our conversation, I asked mom how she felt that day. Her answer, as it was everyday was “I’m as fit as a fiddle”. When I asked about how she stayed so healthy over the years she said she never forgot her nurse's training. “Keep a positive appearance, especially around those that are sick or hurt”. “Keep a good appearance. When you are happy and stay positive it will keep you healthy.”

As we think back, mom was never comfortable when people asked her how she was doing. She would smile and say “I’m as fit as a fiddle” with a look and a shrug that said, why are you asking? Instead of making it about her, she led with a Servant’s Heart. She cared for others first. She never tried to impress with what she knew, but we all knew how much she cared for us.

In the end, a bad fall started the end of life process and she was placed on hospice with Pacifica House. Vira left this earth with her beloved daughter Carol, who faithfully supervised her care and ensured that she received everything she needed the last 10 years of her life, and her grandson Mark at her side, her son Phil and his wife Linda (who were out of state) joined by phone. There were no goodbyes, rather ‘so long mom, grannie, Vira, until we meet again’! Vira leaves behind her husband, her son and daughter, 5 grandchildren, and 5 great-grandchildren. Her legacy will continue on in all of us who knew and loved her. The family would like to acknowledge and thank the staff at Belmont Village of Cardiff, Amazing Grace Home Health Services, and Pacifica House for the loving care that Vira received during her final years.