After working as a licensed structural engineer for more than 14 years, I felt my career had become full of repeating projects and applications of code. The income was great but no fulfilling. I had seen it all.
At my church we have a prayer group, which I joined. The group prays for church members who are either sick or in need of spiritual support. Over a period of one year, my interest in helping and praying for people grew.
I decided to seek out other ways of helping people and registered for a five week training session to become a certified nursing assistant (CNA). As a CNA, I had the opportunity to care for people. The people I cared for commended me as a caring and compassionate staff member. I quickly realized the joy in helping people. Occasionally, the challenges of helping sick people were great but, above all, the smile I put on people’s faces was a greater reward. I have found a new profession in nursing. Having assisted nurses and helping people as a CNA, I developed an interest in pursuing a nursing career as a registered nurse.
Attending nursing school requires a full-time commitment. I had to quit my job to do this. I also have a family of five to support which made it harder to figure out how to afford this. I started off using credit cards to pay for all the expenses since money was very limited. Through the grace of God, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation gave me scholarship to assist with nursing school. Without God’s grace working through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, I would not be able to afford to stay in nursing school.
I look forward to continuing this effort of helping people, to the glory of God.
