roots of hope, rise of the rose
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Inspired by the rose selected by Catherine’s family for the Honouring Garden, Roots of Hope, Rise of the Rose is a meditation on generosity and Catherine’s lifelong devotion to helping others throughout her nursing career. Lily and Catherine share a meaningful connection through their upbringing in Ladysmith, BC, and, by coincidence, both graduated from the same high school. Catherine’s commitment to healing and caring for others inspired the calm, reflective tone of Lily’s composition, which evokes a deep sense of contemplation, connection, and belonging.
sub lieutenant nursing sister catherine walker (nee king)
Catherine D. King was born on May 27th, 1921 in Ladysmith, B.C. where her mother Elizabeth Murdoch Vaughan and father James King raised her and her younger sister Marion in a house her father had built, which was surrounded by a beautiful garden and offered a view of Ladysmith Harbour. Catherine graduated from Ladysmith High School in1939 and entered the Royal Jubilee Hospital School of Nursing in 1940 at the age of 19.
The three-year training program was demanding – 12-hour shifts, many lecture classes, little personal time. It’s no surprise that only half of her original class of 42 students graduated. But Catherine’s dedication, commitment and tenacity carried her through. The Royal Jubilee Hospital was also where she encountered the man she would marry, William (Bill) Walker Sub-Lieutenant RCNVR. The young officer, whom she’d known in childhood, became her patient, in hospital recovering from an appendectomy.
Catherine graduated from nursing school in September 1943 and in July ’44 joined the staff at Kings Daughter Hospital in Duncan, B.C. where she stayed on until the fall, when she enlisted with Royal Canadian Navy. The RCN posted her to Halifax and the Atlantic Command Hospital. In November of 1944 she boarded the CPR train in Vancouver enroute to Halifax via Montreal – a small-town girl dressed in the new uniform of a Sub Lieutenant. Upon her late-night arrival in wintry Halifax she was met by a staff car for the base, HMCS Stadacona. And so began her wartime nursing service.
Catherine nursed at HMCS Stadacona over the next 15 months and was on shift on April 16th,1945 when at 6:30 am the Canadian minesweeper HMCS Esquimalt was torpedoed just outside of Halifax harbour by a German U Boat. Forty-four officers and men went down with the ship which sank in less than four minutes – many of the surviving crew withstood the frigid waters for several hours before they were rescued. Catherine was one of the nursing sisters who looked after them during their recovery.
World War II ended shortly after the sinking of the HMCS Esquimalt and in February 1946 Catherine was discharged from service and returned to Victoria. There, on April 27th, 1946, Catherine and Bill were married and started a family, eventually raising four children. Catherine returned to nursing in 1977, working as a senior RN in a supervisory role at the long term care facility Glenwarren Lodge. She retired from nursing in 1984.
Our mother lived to celebrate her 70th wedding anniversary with her husband Bill and died December 16th, 2016 in her 96th year in the hospital where she had trained.
She often spoke of her nursing years with pride and kept up with the profession as a member of the Alumnae Association of the Royal Jubilee Hospital School of Nursing and in her devoted care of her family members, imparting to her children her strong sense of what it meant to be a thoroughly dedicated nurse.
Bio & Photos graciously provided by Catherine’s family.
A Climbing Rose Florentina has been selected to honour
Sub Lieutenant Nursing Sister Catherine Walker (nee King)
Lily
Lily is in Grade 12 and has been taking piano lessons with Emily Armour for 2 years. Having participated in Music for Veterans Project once before, she embraced this composition project and was deeply connected with the subject matter of the Honouring Garden. A devoted volunteer herself, Lily has served her community by volunteering at her local hospital while completing her Grade 12 academic year. Her composition Roots of Hope, Rise of the Rose, became her Capstone Grade 12 project. This involved recording at Silverside Sound Recording Studio with Lucas McKinnon, and attending the Music for Veterans Project 5 Year Anniversary event at Government House, BC in April 2026.
Currently in production is a museum installation which will feature Lily’s commemorative music along with information about Ladysmith born WW2 veteran Sub Lt Nursing Sister Catherine Walker. The exhibit will be designed and delivered in collaboration with the Ladysmith & District Historical Society and Music for Veterans Project. (June 2026)
