Workday Wednesday : Nursing *

It was the mid-1930s, still a difficult time for many people to find a job. After holding several positions as a nanny or a housekeeper, my mother decided to attend nursing school in hopes of finding a more promising career. Through the assistance of a relative, she was able to attend the nursing school affiliated with St Thomas Hospital in Nashville, Tennessee. The picture above shows my mother as a nursing student relaxing in the garden area of the hospital.

This turned out to be a wise career choice for my mother. She secured a nursing position immediately upon graduation. After she and my father married, she was always able to find work as a nurse wherever his military assignments took him. Sometimes she worked as a nurse anesthetist, other times as a hospital floor nurse. Later, as a mother with young children, she worked one day each week as "the shot lady", giving childhood immunizations at the local health department. Other times she did private duty nursing for critical care patients as well as volunteering to help with Red Cross Blood Drives.

Although my mother later held other jobs outside of the nursing field, she proudly kept her nursing pin and her diploma from St Thomas tucked in a drawer along with the pin indicating she was a registered nurse. She looked back at these years of service and friendships she formed as special times in her life.

* This is one in a series of old family photos showing my ancestors at work.