Janice Feagin Britton, born Oct. 6, 1921 in Montgomery, passed away peacefully Feb. 20, 2014 after a brief illness.
She was a longtime resident of Westminster Village in Spanish Fort. Her 92 years were filled with accomplishment and adventure.
Ms. Britton served in the United States Army Air Corps 801st Medical Air Evacuation Squadron from 1945 to 1948, and then as a member of the United States Air Force from 1948-1952, where she achieved the rank of captain.
She was stationed in the Pacific at the end of World War II and saw the start of the Korean War in 1950. In Korea, she was among the first group of flight nurses to bring wounded soldiers back from the front lines.
She received her nursing degree from Vanderbilt University in 1944, and later received a master’s degree in nursing administration from Boston University in 1956.
She went on to develop a two-year associate degree nursing program at Pensacola Junior College — the first in the state of Florida. Prior to that, nursing programs were typically three- to four-year programs.
She also developed a two-year nursing program at Kellogg Community College in Battle Creek Mich. In the 1970s she served as director of the Bishop State Junior College nursing program in Mobile, where she helped develop a new kind of nursing education program — one for licensed practical nurses who wanted to be registered nurses.
Ms. Britton enjoyed other opportunities for travel and service. In 1966, she was commissioned by the Board of World Missions of the Presbyterian Church to serve as a medical missionary in Brazil from 1967-1970.
At age 78 she volunteered for the United States Peace Corps, where she served in Zambia, Africa from 1998-2000. She returned to Africa in 2002, where she volunteered as a nanny for a family of Wycliffe Bible translators in Chad.
In recent years she has been an active member of the Gulf Coast Chapter of the Korean War Veterans Association and American Legion Post 199.
Prior to becoming an active member of Spanish Fort Presbyterian Church, she served as an elder at Government Street Presbyterian Church for many years.
She has written extensively about her adventures, and was looking forward to writing about her experiences in Brazil when she fell ill.
Ms. Britton was preceded in death by her parents, Hugh Jackson Feagin and Florence Leata Ertzinger; a brother, Hugh Jackson Feagin Jr.; and her husband, Francis R. Britton.
She is survived by two nieces, Pamela Williams and Janice Del Toro; several great-nieces and nephews, and many loving and supportive cousins.
A memorial service to honor and remember Ms. Britton will be held Monday, March 31, 2014, at 11 a.m., at Spanish Fort Presbyterian Church, followed by a reception in the church fellowship hall hosted by the Presbyterian Women’s Club.
