WW2 started soon after my dad graduated. He served in the European theater, but wasn't in active combat. I'm not sure what he did between the end of the war and when he married my mom, the only work I am aware he did was at the local paper mill that went OOB in 1971. Then he worked as a custodian in the Veteran's Hospital in Albany until his passing. I am almost certain he contracted renal carcinoma from all the chemicals to which he was exposed in the days prior to OSHA.
My mom came from a family growing up during the Depression. She had 3 brothers. As kids they had to learn to work early and hard in life to supplement the family income as my maternal grandfather only worked at low-paying jobs and was too proud to apply for public assistance. After high school, she attended nursing school and got an LPN certification. She worked on and off a practical nurse, especially when the paper mill workers went on strike several times and dad was out of work. Most of the time, though, she was a homemaker and was a good cook. She started to suffer from atrial fibrillation at a relatively young age. She also had hypertension and develped Type 2 diabetes. She finally succumbed to CHF.