“ Be His Light” sculpture provides a visual representation of the nurse’s role in a hurting world By Nancy Yuen
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OU MAY NEVER KNOW WHEN YOUR STORY WILL TOUCH SOMEONE,” says JoAnn Shaul, MS, CPA, Assistant Dean for Finance and Administration at the School of Nursing. JoAnn has close ties she with the School of Nursing. Her grandmother, Mirta Hernandez, was a member of the class of 1950 and she treasures a photo of her wearing her nursing uniform. Her grandfather graduated from the School of Medicine in 1952. JoAnn’s understanding of the meaning a nurse’s care deepened when her husband, who was just 27, was in a car accident that left him permanently disabled. He passed away in his sleep 10 years later, at 37, following outpatient surgery. “None of us know if we will be the last person caring for someone, the last person to touch them. Nurses can be a light in a dark place—they can Be His light,” she says.
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JoAnn also recalls seeing the compassion shown by a nurse when her daughter was a newborn in the NICU. “Patients and their families may not remember how an IV was placed or treatments they have been given,” she says. “They will remember how their nurse made them feel.” As she reflected on these experiences that had happened during the most trying parts of her life, JoAnn imagined a sculpture with three figures: Christ, a nurse, and a patient. She began sharing her idea with people visiting her office, and
