On August 28th, 1999, three months after the death of her beloved husband, St. Clair T. Bourne, Gwendolyn S. Bourne died of a cerebral hemorrhage. In accordance with her wishes, the body will be cremated.
Gwendolyn Louise Samuel Bourne was born on September 23, 1913, on the Caribbean island of Antigua, the youngest child of Catherine and John Samuel. Her father was a sailor and was lost at sea when Gwen was very young. With her mother, she came to the United States. After completing her education in the public elementary and Waldleigh High Schools, she enrolled in the Lincoln School for Nurses, to earn her certificate as a graduate nurse. She promptly passed the New York State Board examination to become a Registered Professional Nurse, and was appointed Nurse-in-Charge of the Eye and Ear, Nose and Throat clinics of Lincoln Hospital.
On April 11, 1937, she married journalist St.Clair T. Bourne, a union which remained unbroken for 62 years – the rest of her life. From that union came a son, St.Clair Cecil, a New York-based filmmaker, and a daughter, Judith Louise,an attorney based in St. Thomas, USVI.
Gwen Bourne added a B.S. in public health from New York University and from Fordham University her M.S.S.W. (Master of Science in Social Work), and this led her ultimately into a broader field of medical work. Prior to entering medical social work, she was the first black nurse hired by the Jewish Philanthropies to work at Camp Oakhurst, a summer facility for orthopedically handicapped children in Asbury Park, NJ. She was also one of the first Black nurses hired by the Visiting Nurse Service of New York and taught hygiene and home nursing for the American Red Cross.
Mrs. Bourne accepted a position as social worker at Coney Island Hospital in Brooklyn and, after some years there, joined the medical social work staff of the New York City Department of Social Services, where she rose to the position of Director of the Division of Medical Social Work Services, from which she retired in 1978.
Very active in many areas, over and above her professional career work, she was a member of the New York State Nurses Association, District 13; served, during World War II, as Membership Secretary of the National Association of Colored Graduate Nurse Alumnae Association.
Gwen Bourne was one of the founders of the Department of Social Services NAACP Branch, and was an active member of Local 371, Social Service Employees
Union; District Council 37, State, County and Municipal Workers, where she also served as a member of the union's negotiating committee and the Association of Supervisors of the Department of Social Services. After her retirement, she continued working with District 37 as a member of its Retirees Association Health Committee, and also worked with the Health and Hospitals Corporation. She was also a Life Member of the Civil Service Retired Employees Association.
In community cultural and social areas, Gwen Bourne was equally active. She participated in the founding of the Medgar Evers Community College, was founding president of the Brooklyn Chapter of Jack and Jill of America, and was called back to the presidency ten years later, in 1961.
She was a member of the Gothamettes and president of the club when it celebrated is 40th anniversary.
As a long-time member of the Brooklyn Links she served in several offices and on many working committees. An active participant with the Girl Scouts of America. Other active memberships included the Senior Citizen Liaison Committee of the Kings County Medical Society and the Brooklyn Academy of Medicine, and the Advisory Council of Educational Sponsorship Program.
A memorial celebration of her life was held on Saturday, September 11 at 10 a.m. at St. Ignatius R.C. Church of Rogers Avenue between Carroll and Crown Streets, Brooklyn, NY. And a Memorial Service will be held at the Cathedral Church of St. John in Antigua on October 2, 1999.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to the St.Clair T. and Gwen S. Bourne Memorial Fund (formerly the St.Clair T. Bourne Memorial Fund) at 190
Sullivan Place, Brooklyn, NY 11225.