The Bitter and the Sweet
International Nurses Day is a bittersweet occasion for us this year. We have several nurses on our staff, and we certainly want to acknowledge them all and give them the recognition they deserve on this special day. We notice their sacrifices and how they routinely go the extra mile for the children, and we hope they know how valued they are to our organization. That is the sweet part.
The bitter is that we have had to say goodbye to a few of our nurses recently due to circumstances beyond our control. We are so very sad to see them go, and on this Nurses Day, we thought we would share some special going-away messages.
Jeanky, April, and Alyssa have already left China, and Ednalyn (known as Eds) will leave sometime next month. We’ve done a spotlight on each of them in the past and we hope you will check out those previous posts if you have not already.
Today, here are a few of our heartfelt thoughts and best wishes for a fond farewell.
Dr. Steve, our CEO and Medical Director, shared these observations:
Jeanky is full of life and joy. She brings laughter and fun to those around her. Eds is trustworthy and a great organizer. She loves the children so much and the children have such fun with her. Alyssa is so very kind and tender toward the children. She instills peace in others and brings security to those around her. April brings love and light to others, and her joy is contagious! Each one is such a great nurse in her own right.
Jona, our Chief Nursing Officer, had this to say to the foursome:
Thank you for your years of service and tireless dedication, for always going above and beyond what is expected. You were all incredible colleagues, mentors, and friends, and you will be sadly missed. I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with you; your hard work, dedication, and positive attitude are an inspiration to us all. Thank you for everything and wishing you the best of luck and success in your next journey.
Hannah, our Social Media Coordinator, added:
There will never be enough words to describe the extent of dedication, care, love, and grit that these nurses have shown to the children and overall work of New Hope Foundation. I have personally seen them in action and will forever be in awe of their hearts and skills for what they do. It would be difficult to count the number of medical duties performed or lives they’ve helped save; but it would be impossible to quantify the impact they have made on the children and nannies’ lives. Their legacy will live on in the hearts of many.
Susan, our Chief Communications Officer, rounds out the notes:
The pandemic brought lots of changes to many spheres of life, and our organization was no exception. When it became impossible for me to be onsite for photography and other things concerning our communications, our nurses stepped in to fill that void in an incredible way.
April and Alyssa both worked at the same Healing Home, and they made a wonderful team. It was not always clear exactly who was contributing which pieces, so I’ll talk about them together. It was so obvious that both loved the children dearly, and they knew their individual personalities so well. They were both great communicators and provided our sponsors with an authentic snapshot of their sponsored children in real-time. They were also so good at decorating for birthday parties and other special occasions, and I could always count on getting a ton of photos from these events!
Jeanky will be remembered for her joyful spirit. It seems she was always laughing! That special quality spilled over onto the children and helped to get so many wonderful smiles from them as well. Occasionally Jeanky would be on the other side of the camera with them, and it was always nice to see her own smiles and interactions with the children. She and her special talent will be missed.
Eds is so very good with a camera! I always looked forward to seeing and working with her photos. There was no end to her hard work in creating wonderful photo shoots for special occasions, birthday parties, and so on, and she would always find a way to provide me what I was looking for. Her ordinary, everyday photos of the children were actually quite extraordinary as well. I hope she will find a worthy outlet for her talent and creative gift going forward.
And so we say, “Bon voyage,” dear ones. Thank you for your years of work for New Hope and your dedication and care for the children. You will be greatly missed, and we wish you all the best that life has to offer on your onward journeys.
