New Nurses Honor Guard formed to pay respect to careers of caring

New Nurses Honor Guard formed to pay respect to careers of caring

When Vic Pavlovec's mother Rosie, a 56-year veteran nurse at Gundersen Palmer Lutheran Hospital, died on March 22, Vic knew she wanted to honor her mom's long and distinguished career during the funeral service. What she found was a group of nurses from a nearby town - many of whom didn't know the family - who came to pay tribute as members of a newly formed Nurses Honor Guard.

It was an extraordinarily solemn addition to the funeral, and it immediately had Vic thinking, "Why don't we do something like this?" So, Vic, along with long-time friend and fellow (retired) nurse Deb Chensvold, set out to create Gundersen Palmer's first-ever Nurses Honor Guard, which officially formed and began services earlier this summer. Its name: Rosie's Watch Nurses Honor Guard.

Nurses Honor Guards are part of a national program that's been around for about 10 years, with chapters mostly concentrated in the eastern portions of the country. Their role is similar to those honor guards for police officers or firefighters, bestowing one final tribute to a person who dedicated their lives to the service of others.

They perform what's known as a Nightingale ceremony, named after Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. Though ceremonies differ based on the family's wishes, they generally include a written tribute that's read aloud, as well as a final call with the deceased nurse's license number and name. A bell is rung three times, signifying the end of the nurse's duties. Then a lantern, which is lit throughout the ceremony, is extinguished and given to the family.

In Iowa, there are only a handful of honor guards, mostly in cities larger than West Union. But following Vic's experience with an honor guard from New Hampton at her mom's funeral, and aided by Deb's drive to make it happen, the women got to work.

The first - and most important - task was recruiting members into their ranks. Following Rosie's funeral, which was big because of the number of people who knew her, there was buzz amongst Palmer nurses about the honor guard they saw. So, when Vic and Deb put out the call for members, it didn't take long to fill out a roster.

Typically, Vic said the goal is to have at least three or four nurses at each funeral where their presence is requested, which requires a core group of six to eight members. Almost immediately, they had 25 signed up.

That's a good thing, she said, because the guard serves more than just those with connections to Palmer. They travel anywhere within a 25-mile radius of West Union for funerals - for any family that requests them.

"It's not necessarily just Palmer based," Vic said. "Our goal is to be nurse based. If you're a nurse anywhere in our 25-mile radius, we will put together our Nightingale service and come and honor you."

They were also assisted by local seamstress Lynn Lauer, who has a quilt shop in West Union and connections to the hospital. When the ladies were looking to have uniforms made, Lauer didn't hesitate, purchasing fabric at cost and helping the group construct the 10 sets of dark blue capes and white hats. Memorial donations to Rosie's family provided seed money to give the guard its start; from then on, Gundersen Palmer Auxiliary stepped in to support the honor guard.

"I have no doubt that we're not going to have any trouble sustaining this," Deb said, "because I think word will get out and people will want to support it."

Rosie's Watch had its first ceremony in May - a small, private graveside service for a nurse who died of cancer. Since then, two others have passed, and the honor guard has provided its services in a church. Whether it's standing guard over the casket at a visitation, a graveside service or a church funeral, the guard's involvement caters to what the family wants, the women said.

"We just have to be flexible and honor the family's wishes," Deb said. "The purpose is to honor the nurse and give comfort to the family."

Even though each guard member volunteers their time to attend to a request, the women aren't surprised by the level of interest amongst the nurses.

"They do it," Deb said, "because at their core, they care. That's why they're nurses to begin with."

"I think it's because nursing is a passion," she added. "People don't go into nursing - at least they shouldn't - just as a job. For most of the people who want to be a part of this, it's a way to honor their career and the late nurse's career. It's just kind of a legacy we can leave."

"It's the people who have that caring, giving heart. This is their way of kind of giving back."

Vic added, "You're never a nurse alone. It's a team, and people who are in that profession, they understand what each other is going through and so you have the greatest respect for anyone else when you hear, 'I'm a nurse, too.' Whether you ever worked together or knew that person or not, you can relate to what you both did as nurses."

If you wish to support the mission of the Rosie's Watch Nurses Honor Guard at Gundersen Palmer Lutheran with a donation, you can call the hospital's Auxiliary at (563) 422-9796.