Aurore Chace

Aurore Lafond Chace

THREE CHLDREN. She was number 4 in a family of 9 children. She was born July 27th, 1921 and named Aurore, which means "coming of the dawn."

She lived with her parents, grandparents, and a great grandmother who lived to be 102. Unfortunately, her father died at the age of 36, leaving his wife, pregnant with the 9th child. Also her sister Theresa, the youngest child at the time, died a month agter her father of tetnus.

Aurore knew by the time she was 5 that she wanted to be a nurse. She graduated from Dartmouth High School in 1939. In 1942, she graduated from Truesdale School of Nursing as an RN and took her boards in Boston, making it official. Then she worked in Truesdale Hospital in Obstetrics.

She married Robert Chace in Califormia on March 13th, 1945, but stayed on at the hospital until 1946 because Bob was still going to sea as a captain in the Merchant Marines. He missed the birth of the first baby but was home for good for the second one. Then he started Chace Grain Co. around 1950 and three years later became a father again.

Then Aurore was a stay at home mom until the youngest child turned 13 and she did private duty nuursing until she was 69.

Aurore was very involved in the girl scouts when her children were growing up. Both she and Bob were Mariner Leaders with Louise Strongman until Miss Strongman gave it up. Aurore dedicated many hours to working on the Mariner Fairs - one at Christmas and one in the summer.

She also taught Sunday school at the First Unitarian Church for 12 years and still attends the church.

When Bob and Aurore retired, they spent a lot of time sailing on their boat, which they had always done, but now with no interruptions.

Sadly, Bob passed away at 87, but Aurore is about to be 96 this month and is still quite independent.

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Four elderly people sit side by side on wooden chairs in a room with rows of seats.
Elderly woman in a coral sweater stands outdoors by a stone stairway and greenery.
Aurore Lafond and Robert Chace with their family.
Young woman with shoulder-length hair, smiling, wears dark dress with white collar.
Portrait of a woman with dark hair, wearing a white blouse, facing the camera and smiling.
Woman holding a bundled infant while seated on a patterned chair, another person nearby.
Elderly woman and man standing in front of a shingled house with a white door.
A man and woman sit at a table, both facing the camera; text names them below the photo.
Three older adults stand on a boat with water and mountains in the background.
Older woman in apron serves food onto trays in a cafeteria-style kitchen setting.
Two people standing by a docked sailboat with a palm tree and pier visible behind them.
Two women standing and smiling outside, with trees and boats in the background.
Six older women, wearing name tags, stand together and smile at a conference event.
Elderly woman with white hair holds a baby wrapped in a blanket on a dark sofa.
Older woman standing at a table, sorting colorful cards and papers by hand.
Two older women stand smiling at a scenic overlook with canyons in the background.
Elderly woman standing at a table sorting cards and papers in a domestic setting.
Two older adults stand in front of a shingled house with the address number 666.

THE HELFAND FAMILY OF DARTMOUTH

  • A ROUND TABLE DISCUSSION
  • MODERATOR: BOB HARDING
  • MEMBERS AT THE TABLE:
    • EDITH HELFAND
    • SOPHIE HELFAND
    • AURORA (LAFOND) CHACE
    • DORIS (DAVIES) DAVENPORT
    • RUBEN GOLDSTEIN