In the little cottage known as the Health Center, nurses are always ready to help any girls in need. Being a nurse at Grier requires a lot of passion. The nurses work hard every day, keeping the infirmary open from 7am until 10pm each night. Along with their hardworking nature, they care greatly about the health and wellbeing of the student body. “Caring for people has always been a part of my love language,” said Nurse Brittany Cunningham.

The nurses are not only there to take care of the students physically, but also to help with their mental health. Nurse Billie Jo Uron is always around to give a “mom hug” when needed. While there is a lot of physical and emotional support, the nurses also make sure students are getting their meds when needed, taking care of themselves when sick, and powering through when necessary. Uron said, “Sometimes we give tough love. You know?”

The nurses love Grier because of the girls whom they interact with on a daily basis. “The Grier girls make the infirmary worth coming to,” said Nurse Tasha Hockenberry. Nurse Billie Jo added that one of the best things about Grier is that nurses get to interact with students even outside of the Health Center. “Even when I am not taking care of you guys medically,” Uron said, “I get to go watch you guys practice riding horses, or dancing, or singing, or playing an instrument, or some other activity going on on campus.”After working in health care for almost thirty years, Nurse Billie Jo has found her love for Grier. 

While everyone tries to avoid illnesses as they spread like wildfire around campus, the Grier nurses have the added difficulty of staying healthy while taking care of sick students all day. Not only are the students advised to rest, hydrate, eat healthy, and wash their hands, but the nurses are also advised to do the same. “In some ways, it’s less demanding [than other jobs],” Uron says, “and in some ways, it’s more demanding.” Part of the demanding nature of the job can also be found in the constant decisions nurses have to make like whether students need to go to the hospital, urgent care, or the doctor’s office. Those choices help to keep students safe and the campus at large healthy.

A shift in the infirmary is definitely fulfilling, but it can also be exhausting. “I go home and nap,” Nurse Tasha said. However, their beds are not the only thing our nurses get to go home to after leaving Grier. Outside of the infirmary, these nurses all have loving families. Nurse Tasha goes home to her daughter and boyfriend. Nurse Billie Jo has two sons, one who is a police officer and one who is sixteen-years-old and learning how to drive. Nurse Bille Jo also takes care of her grandmother and has two cats as well as a new puppy who can be seen getting walked around campus. 

The nurses have formed a tight-knit group who rely on one another for support. They work as a team to make sure the Health Center is running smoothly and ensure that someone is always there to provide a healing touch for the students. “I have a great team of nurses who I really rely on,” Nurse Billie Jo said. “I am very proud of them.”