Sara Catherine Flynn
It is with great sadness that the family of Sara Catherine Flynn announce her passing after a prolonged battle with colon cancer, on October 9, 2008, at the age of 76.
Sara is lovingly remembered by her husband of 47 years, Donald Francis Flynn; her children, Sharon Anne Flynn of San Francisco, CA; Michael Francis Flynn of San Mateo, CA; Linda Tara Flynn of Fort Lauderdale, FL; Donna Kathryn Flynn and her husband David G. Nitsch of Nederland, CO; and her grand-daughter, Elysia Skye Nitsch, also of Nederland, CO. Sara will also be forever remembered by all of her extended family, friends, and admirers around the world.
Sara was born in Greensboro, North Carolina, on February 2, 1932, spent her young childhood with her grandparents on a farm in the Smoky Mountains, and later moved with her parents to the coastal town of New Bern. She began her life’s adventures as a pioneering member of the first graduating class of the University of North Carolina School of Nursing (class of 1955) – which was also the first class of freshman women on the Chapel Hill campus. Her first job out of school was with the U.S. Army 97th General Hospital in Frankfurt, Germany, followed by a year working on Wall Street in New York City. In 1959, she took a job with the Arabian American Oil Company (ARAMCO) in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, where she worked her way up to the role of District Head Nurse, supervising a primary health care center and programs focused on maternal and child health, tuberculosis, and nutrition. That is where she met the love of her life, Donald, while on a double date, sitting across the table as her friend’s date. Several weeks later, Don and Sara were engaged. They married in Rome in 1961 and then returned to Saudi where they started their family and lived for a total of 10 years. In 1968, while still in Saudi Arabia, Sara and Don bought their house on Hawk Mountain in Pittsfield. Pittsfield was a beloved home for many years as they traveled the globe, including a 20-year period of being based in Bruxelles, Belgium. Sara’s nursing career continued to evolve, from Assistant Director of Nursing with the Rutland Area Visiting Nurses Association, to graduating “avec distinction” from the Institute de Medecine Tropical Prince Leopold in Antwerpen, Belgium, to serving as co-chair of the Belgian Chapter of Nurses Abroad.
Sara’s life will be celebrated at the Pittsfield Federated Church on Wednesday, October 15th at 10:00 A.M.. Burial will follow at Pittsfield Village Cemetery. There are no calling hours. Donations in her honor may be made to the Norris Cotton Cancer Center of Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, One Medical Center Drive, Lebanon, NH 03756, or to Roger Clark Memorial Library, P.O. Box 743, Pittsfield, VT 05762.