Although Claudia Tennant was not a graduate of the Galt School of Nursing, it was a key part of her life. Tennant spent twenty years at both the Galt Hospital and the Lethbridge Municipal Hospital as the Director of Nursing for the Galt School of Nursing. Her original decision to become a nurse was influenced by Lucy Hatch McInnis, a graduate from the Galt School of Nursing’s first ever class in 1913.

Tennant received her training in Calgary, graduating from the Holy Cross Hospital in 1939. She stayed on to work in the operating room for two years at Holy Cross before joining the Navy in 1943 to support the war effort. After the war ended, she attended McGill University for a Bachelor of Nursing degree in their School of Nursing Administration.

Upon returning to Southern Alberta, Tennant took the position of Matron at the Taber Hospital. She did not remain in Taber for long however, as The Galt Hospital offered her a position as Superintendent of Nursing in 1949. Over the years, she earned the love and respect of many students while training the next generation of nurses.

Tennant excelled in this post as the polio epidemic swept the prairies. She was presented with the “Woman of the Year for Lethbridge” award in 1953 for her work combatting the polio epidemic and working with polio-stricken patients. Tennant also played a key role in the school’s transition from the Galt to the new Lethbridge Municipal Hospital in 1955.

Volunteerism was important to Tennant as well, giving her time to serve as President of the Alberta Association of Registered Nurses from 1961 to 1963. She was also appointed president of the Provincial Cancer Society in 1963.

After leaving Lethbridge in 1969 she spent the next decade working for the World Health Organization in Mauritius and Botswana. Even after “retirement” in 1977, she continued her volunteer work for the United Nations providing medical services in Yemen and Hong Kong.

In 1998, Claudia was awarded the Y.W.C.A. Women of Distinction Humanitarian Award. She passed away in 2006 at the age of 89.

Learn more about the history of medical care in Lethbridge by visiting “Taking Care,” the museum’s newest exhibit on permanent display.