A WARTIME nurse who was whisked off on a secret mission to tend to wounded D-Day soldiers has celebrated her 100th birthday.

Helen MacDonald was born in June 1919 and is the eldest of four children.

She was brought up on the small island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides - a Gaelic speaking crofting and fishing community.

Her early memories include walking almost two miles to school every day through remote countryside.

The children were not allowed to speak Gaelic in the classroom and all lessons were conducted in English.

Helen was able to reminisce over her childhood at She marked her 100th birthday with a Scottish party at Stanway Green Lodge, where she lives.

Her daughter, Mary Parish, said her mum went on to become a nurse and completed her training at St Bartholomew’s Hospital in London during the Second World War.

It was here she was sent on a secret mission to tend to wounded soldiers on D-Day.

Mary said: “She would have been in her early twenties. She was told to go to the matron’s office which was a terrifying thing to do.

“She was told not to bother changing her apron - everyone had to change their apron before seeing the matron.

“She and three others were told to pack suitcases and not tell anybody.

“It turned out they were preparing for D-Day. She had the suitcase packed for about three weeks and one day was told to move to a different ward before being taken to the south coast where they would nurse incoming soldiers.”

Helen loved her job and alsolater nursed tuberculosis patients in a specialist orthopaedic hospital in Middlesex, where the patients would be wheeled outside in their beds as part of the treatment.

She carried on with nursing until marrying husband John, also from South Uist, in 1952 in Glasgow, and the couple set up home in Middlesex as John worked for the British Overseas Airways Corporation.

Mary, who has a younger brother Angus, said: “They both came from the same island and bumped into each other on a pilgrimage to Rome in 1950. They both said ‘what on Earth are you doing here?’ and that was it really.

“They went back to Rome for their honeymoon.”

Helen and John were well known members of the Gaelic speaking community of London enjoying many Scottish events.

John died in 1993 and Helen lived independently until she was 98, with support from son Angus.

A grandmother of two and great grandmother of two, Helen then moved to Colchester to live with her daughter Mary and to be close to her great-grandchildren.

She moved to Stanway Green Lodge care home in October and is already teaching the staff Gaelic.

Mary said: “She still enjoys singing Gaelic songs, dancing and even giving instructions on how to milk a cow. “She is still quite active and she would say the key to long life is all the fresh air she had as a child.”

Fifteen nieces and nephews came for the celebration including some from the Hebrides.

A Scottish celebration was held with singing, dancing and bagpipes.