Virginia Allen

Virginia Allen was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1931 and raised in Detroit, Michigan, until age 16, when she persuaded her parents to let her live with her Aunt Edna, a registered nurse, on Staten Island. That decision helped shape the path of her nursing career and placed her in position to care for tuberculosis patients at Sea View Hospital’s sanitarium.

Her work there became part of a historic legacy. Virginia Allen is recognized as one of the Black Angels, the Black nurses who cared for patients during the tuberculosis crisis at Sea View Hospital. Today, she stands as the last surviving Black Angel, a living link to a legacy of service, sacrifice, and groundbreaking contribution to healthcare history.

In her sixties, Virginia pivoted from bedside nursing to labor relations, studying at Cornell University, New York University, and the College of Staten Island to better serve healthcare workers through Local 144 and 1199 SEIU. Her leadership also extended into the community through her work with the National Council of Negro Women, Staten Island Section, where she established a Youth Scholarship Fund and launched the annual Harambee Celebration to honor selfless community leaders.

She later returned to nursing, maintained an active license, and ultimately retired from the operating room at Staten Island University Hospital. Beyond nursing, Virginia has dedicated more than four decades to civic, cultural, and educational organizations across New York, serving as a board member, trustee, historian, advocate, and community builder.

Her work has been recognized by numerous local and state leaders and institutions, including the New York State Nurses Association, the Staten Island Advance, the New York State Senate and Assembly, and multiple civic and cultural organizations. In 2021, she received Black History Month recognition from the New York State Nurses Association and was honored again as a Black Angel during the unveiling of the Sea View Murals.

Virginia enjoys music, art, theater, travel, and reading. She lives by the belief that “this world is all we have, and it is our duty to care for one another,” a principle she has carried through more than nine decades of service, leadership, and impact.