Haven Hospice honored 102-year-old patient Laura Finck with a veteran recognition ceremony to thank her for her service in the United States Navy during World War II. She is pictured with her family and Haven Volunteer Coordinator Michael Maloney, who is also a veteran. Maloney wrote a heartfelt tribute for the recognition ceremony. We share this with you in honor of Mrs. Finck and her sacrifices for our country. 

“Today, we are gathered for something truly sacred.

We are here to honor Laura—a woman who is 102 years old, whose life stretches across more than a century, and whose service reaches back to a time when the world itself was uncertain, fragile, and afraid.

When Laura was young, the world was at war.

Not a distant war remembered through photographs and documentaries—but a war that entered homes, altered futures, and asked ordinary people to rise into extraordinary responsibility.

It was a time of ration books and blackout curtains.

Of radios carrying voices that could bring hope—or heartbreak. Of handwritten letters, folded carefully, read over and over, held close because they carried love, fear, and longing.

And in that moment in history, Laura chose to serve.

At a time when women were often told to remain in the background, to wait, to stay quiet—Laura stepped forward. Not for recognition. Not for praise. But because her country needed her.

Her service mattered.

Over the course of Laura’s lifetime, she has witnessed a world transform again and again.

She was born before television lit living rooms, before computers connected people across continents, before medicine could save so many lives now taken for granted.

She lived through the Great Depression, through a global war that reshaped nations, through decades of change marked by both progress and loss.

She lived to see men walk on the moon.
She lived to see women claim their voices and their places.
She lived to see a world grow faster, louder, more complicated.

And yet—through all of that change—there is something steady and grounding in Laura’s presence.

Because service like hers does not fade with time.

Women like Laura held this nation together when the future was not guaranteed. They worked, they waited, they endured. Often without applause. Often without acknowledgment. Often without being asked how heavy the responsibility felt, or how much courage it required to carry it quietly.

History does not always speak their names loudly.

But history was shaped by their hands.

Today, Laura is not just a World War II veteran.

She is a living memory.

A witness to sacrifice.

A bridge between generations.

A reminder of what it means to show up when the world needs you most.

She carries within her the strength of a generation that understood duty not as a slogan, but as a way of life.

Today, we pause—not just to recognize Laura’s service—but to honor her life.

The years she lived after the uniform came off.
The resilience it took to keep going.
The wisdom earned by seeing so much, losing so much, and still standing with grace.

Laura, to you—and to all women of your generation who served when the world stood on the edge of uncertainty:

You mattered then.

You matter now.

And you will not be forgotten.

It is with deep respect, humility, and gratitude that we say—on behalf of a nation shaped by your courage:

Thank you for your service, Laura.
Thank you for your strength.
Thank you for the century of history you carry, and the legacy you leave behind.

You are honored you today.

My salute to you…This is not a performative act. This is a passage. A recognition of your legacy, your courage, and the lives you protected. It is a sacred gesture, holding the weight of gratitude, memory, and honor.” – Michael Maloney, Haven Hospice Volunteer Coordinator