this by saying "I hope the criterion for selection did not include race but competence". She obtained a degree in nursing from Villanova, and a masters in teaching from Columbia. Her career was distinguished she won many a medal, including the Army Distinguished Service Medal, and was awarded army nurse of the year twice. She was also awarded a Meritorious Service Medal and Army Commendation Medal with oak leaf cluster. Post-military career After Johnson-Brown retired from the army in 1983 she headed the American Nurses Association's government relations unit as well as directed the George Mason University's Center for Health Policy as an assistant professor and later a professor on her own. A key to Johnson-Brown's success was driven by her immense well-rounded personality as well as her intellect. Johnson-Brown treated everyone the same and demanded that in return. "She recalled going with her mother to a hot dog stand in Philadelphia. Several times the waitress walked past them to serve white customers first. When the waitress finally delivered their order, Gen. Johnson-Brown turned it away. 'Now you eat it,' she told the waitress. To her mother she said, 'Let's go.'" In an interview she stated that she was never a "quiet dissenter" when it came to slights she suffered as a black woman, inside uniform and outside as well. She "always was a people person," her sister Gloria Smith remarks. Johnson-Brown's marriage to David Brown ended in divorce without children. Johnson-Brown developed Alzheimer's disease in later life. In 1990, during Operation Desert Storm, Johnson-Brown volunteered to work in the surgical suite at Fort Belvoir, Virginia's Army Hospital. Johnson-Brown spent her last remaining years with her sister, Gloria Smith, in Wilmington, Delaware. Personal life and legacy In 1981, Johnson married David Brown. She added on his name to hers and was known from then on as Hazel Johnson-Brown. However, their marriage did not last and they eventually divorced. Johnson-Brown was a Catholic, a member of St. Clare in Clifton, Virginia (where her funeral Mass was held). Johnson-Brown died in Wilmington, Delaware, on August 5, 2011 at the age of 83. She was while en route to the hospital; after her arrival, it was realized that the cause of Johnson-Brown's death was Alzheimer's disease. She was buried at Arlington National Cemetery. When remembering Johnson-Brown, Army Nurse Corps historian Lieutenant Colonel Nancy Cantrell explained that "Brigadier General Hazel Johnson-Brown was remarkable in