Kimberly McGregor

Occupation: Registered nurse, Emergency Department at Decatur Memorial Hospital, volleyball coach at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School and St. Teresa High School.

Family: I live in Decatur with my husband, Brian; our two children, Alex and Aidan; our three dogs, Bubba J, Callie, and Little Dog; and our fancy bearded dragon, Cortez. Our daughter, Alex, is 19 years old and attends Millikin University. Our son, Aidan, is 14 years old and will attend st. Teresa High School in the fall.

Career highlights and / or accomplish

ments: I did not attend nursing school until I was 30 years old, so my career is relatively new. I have been a registered nurse for the past seven years, both at Decatur Memorial Hospital and St. John’s Hospital. Most of that time has been spent caring for women and children on Pediatrics and Labor and Delivery at DMH and the Neonatal ICU at St. John’s. I made the move to the ER at DMH this past March. I love to be challenged in the workplace and the ER provides that for me. Thanks to some of my wonderful patients, I have been nominated for “Exceptional Service” awards several times. Each and every nomination has been extremely special to me. ln addition to nursing, I am also a volleyball coach at both Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School and St. Teresa High School. Coaching volleyball is one of my passions. It was a huge honor to coach at the State Finals last fall! And if you hadn’t heard, we won the state championship!

Community involvement: Between working as a nurse and coaching volleyball I don’t have as much time to volunteer in the community as I would like, but I love helping wherever I can at the kids’ schools. I have also been a court appointed special advocate with CASA in the past.

What should the community do to attract

more young people to the area? I feel like Decatur is on the right track. Young people want good jobs and fun entertainment. We have several quality places of employment in our community and great entertainment venues, such as The Devon Amphitheater, Decatur Brew Works, and Door 4 Brewery. As long as Decatur continues that trend,

SARAH JANE PHOTOGRAPHY

we should have no problem continuing to recruit young people to our community.

almost every day since then. Our 15th anniversary is this year. I am a lucky woman! 2. Second, I love music. I would have music playing all of the time if I could. I often have music playing at home, at work, and in my car. I like various kinds of genres too, it just depends on my mood. I love going to concerts. A Matt Nathanson concert is top of my list to go see with my husband and a good outdoor summer country concert with my daughter can’t be beat! 3. Finally, another thing that most people don’t know about me is that I love home projects. I am no Joanna Gaines, but I love remodeling and changing things around. I don’t think my family would be surprised if they came home and I had taken down a wall or something. I never stop.

What is the best and worst piece of advice you have ever received?

Best: The best advice comes from the Bible: “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything” (Philippians 4:6)

Worst: “Just do what everyone else does.” That’s incredibly boring!

If you were a fi ctional character, who

would you be and why? I am not a fan of fi ction.

What are your three favorite movies?

I can never resist “Dirty Dancing,” “Pretty Woman or “Sweet Home Alabama.” I could probably recite each of those movies word for word.

What would your perfect Saturday be like?

I love to be outside, so my perfect Saturday would include mowing or cleaning up the yard, sitting on the deck grilling and drinking wine, or being at the dog park with my dogs. My son Aidan and I also love hiking and kayaking, so a trip to Starved Rock or Turkey Run would also be perfect.

What are three things that most people don’t know about you?

1. For starters, most people don’t know that I met my husband at a bar and it was pretty much love at fi rst sight. We spent the evening dancing and went on our fi rst date the next night. We have been together Who inspires you to be better? My family is my rock and my source of inspiration. I was raised by a single mom and she was the hardest working person I have ever known. I remind myself of the sacrifi ces that she made to provide for my sister and me. My husband and children also inspire me. My husband has always supported my crazy work and volleyball schedules and has been there for our kids when I have been away working nights, weekends, and holidays. Everything I do is for our family.