Born at “The Booth,” a nurse carries on family tradition of care
By Melina Giubilaro, Communications Specialist
Every year on New Year’s Eve, Pearl Whammond returns to the room where she was born at Catherine Booth Hospital. It’s a chance to revisit her family’s legacy and reflect on her own lifelong connection to the place she calls home.
Ms. Whammond, who became a Nursing Consultant at Catherine Booth, grew up just across the street from the hospital and watched it evolve while her mother and aunt worked as nurses within its walls. When she’s on duty at “The Booth,” as it is fondly called, she can still see her house from the hospital’s kitchen window.
As Catherine Booth Hospitals celebrates its 100th anniversary, few stories capture the heart of this milestone better than that of Ms. Whammond and her family.
“This is where it all began,” Ms. Whammond says as she enters the room where she was born, now a storage space. “There’s really something to being exactly at the place where you came into the world.”
Ms. Whammond’s parents purchased a house across the street from Catherine Booth in September, 1969. As Ms. Whammond’s pregnant mother was shoveling snow one day in late December, she started to have contractions. She walked across Walkley Avenue to the Catherine Booth maternity ward, where Pearl was born just before midnight on New Year’s Eve.
Soon after giving birth, Adela Whammond was recruited to work at The Booth: The hospital found out that she was a nurse who would only have to cross the street to come in. Meanwhile, Pearl Whammond’s aunt, Delia Dandrea, had started working at the hospital as a nurse in 1962; her name was added to the Booth Quarter Century plaque in the lobby in 1987.
“It really is a family story,” Ms. Whammond says. “My mom worked here, my aunt worked here, and now I’m here too.”
Ms. Whammond continues her family’s service in her role as a Nursing Consultant, a position she has proudly held for more than a decade. “I love it here,” she says.
“It’s home. Our group is very close-knit. Many of us have worked together for 20 years or more.”
Pearl Whammond
Ms. Whammond witnessed the facility’s transformation from a general hospital to a rehabilitation centre in 1973, watching as it adapted to the evolving needs of its patients.
“When I started in 2000, most patients were independent, recovering from their first hip or knee replacement,” she explains. “Now, many are older, with more complex needs. We’ve had to evolve to meet them where they are.”
Despite these changes, what remains constant is the compassion and camaraderie that defines Catherine Booth, as well as its warm, tight-knit culture. “We’re a family here. We celebrate birthdays, baby showers, retirements. We’ve shared every stage of life together.”
The family’s connection to The Booth continues. Ms. Whammond’s 97-year-old mother, who still lives across the street in the same family home, recently received outpatient physiotherapy at the hospital.
“She was right back where it all started,” Ms. Whammond says. “It felt full circle.”
From her birth to her current role mentoring nurses, Ms. Whammond’s story symbolizes Catherine Booth’s enduring spirit. For 100 years, the hospital has stood as a pillar of care shaped by the people who call it home.
“When the time comes, I want to retire from here,” Ms. Whammond says. “This place has given so much to my family. I just want to give back.”
