U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
11/11/2024 | News release | Distributed by Public on 11/11/2024 09:51
A song for Veterans Day from a brave VA nurse
A VA nurse wrote a song for Veterans Day.
Recognizing and valuing each Veteran's personal sacrifices every day is what VA does best. And for those Veterans that have chosen to continue their service at VA it's an extra special commitment to continue their service.
Major Katie Lunning, a member of the Minnesota Air National Guard and a VA intensive care nurse manager at VA Central Iowa Health Care System, knows this commitment well.
Courage in the face of fire
Awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, our nation's highest award for heroism while participating in aerial flight, Lunning was only the second nurse to ever to receive the award, recognized for her role in evacuating the severely injured during the U.S. pullout from Afghanistan.
She was on the Critical Care Transport Team, a three-person unit meant to pick up the most critically injured or ill and fly them to a higher-level echelon of care. Lunning's transport helped to evacuate and care for patients leaving Kabul during the chaotic final days of the American evacuation.
"We were pulling them out as they were getting injured. Aug. 26, when the suicide bomber exploded at Abbey Gate, we were the first team in," she shared. Lunning has humbly described her experiences as a matter of circumstance and says she was glad to be in the right place at the right time, helping to save American lives.
Sharing her story through song
Starting as a student nurse at the Minnesota VA, and after becoming a registered nurse, Lunning worked in the intensive care unit until moving to Iowa. "I appreciate all of my experiences at VA. My whole background has been at VA, so I'm appreciative of everything VA has given me," she said.
Deeply impacted by her experiences, both while in uniform and as a VA nurse, Lunning recently participated in a songwriting experience led by two of Nashville's most prolific and award-winning song writers, Steve Dean and Don Goodman.
From The Battlefield To The Bedside takes the listener through some of what she's experienced, "From a Minnesota river town to the Middle East" and to VA.
Then she met Linda Davis, a Nashville recording artist for more than 40 years, a Grammy winner and a member of the Grand Old Opry
Davis was offered the opportunity to record Lunning's song. She jumped at the chance. "An incredible testament to Katie's strength and resilience," said Davis. "Katie's story is truly remarkable, and I am so honored to have recorded her song."
"This isn't just about my journey. It's about all of us, together, finding our way back through the music," said Lunning.
From the Battlefield to the Bedside is a testament of conviction, faith and courage, and is especially important this Veterans Day.