Former Army Nurse Dolores Collins describes the treatment of Pres. Eisenhower

DENVER – What did President Dwight Eisenhower, Cab Calloway and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr in common? Of course, they all met former Army Nurse Dolores Collins.

Denver7 this week participated in Volunteers of America’s annual “I Remember Mama” campaign, which includes delivering flowers and gift bags to women in our area ahead of Mother’s Day. Thankfully, that led us to the home of the 90-year-old pioneer and legend.

Dolores worked at Fitzsimons Army Hospital from the 1950s until its closure in 1991, treating President Dwight Eisenhower after his heart attack in 1955. He stayed in the hospital for seven weeks.

“I gave him fresh water, made his bed … did all of that for him,” said Collins, who moved here from West Virginia when she was 18. “[He was] very nice.”

Read the story above to learn more about the I Remember Mama campaign and Dolores’ life. She even tells the story of meeting Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and that it didn’t go quite as planned!

For more information about the great work that Volunteers of America Colorado is doing, click here.