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Nursing pinning The largest nursing class in Mount Mercy history, 77 strong, was pinned during a May 16 ceremony in the Hennessey Gym. |
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Ceremony honors By Brian Heinemann The 36th class of nurses to graduate from Mount Mercy College, the biggest such group in school history, was honored and pinned the evening before graduation in Hennessey on May 16, 2008. With the pinning and the subsequent graduation, the 77 graduates join over 1,500 nurses who have graduated from Mount Mercy since the first class in 1973. They were treated to a keynote speaker whom they already were well familiar with. Linda Groepper, R.N., M.S.N., an Associate Professor of Nursing at Mount Mercy, delivered the speech. Groepper has been with Mount Mercy for 18 years and left the nursing graduates with powerful and honest words as they head into their futures. “As you leave Mount Mercy College, I want you to know that being a nurse means you will never be bored. You will have an immense responsibility. At times you will have very little authority,” she said. “Some will bless you and some will curse you…but you will never be amazed by people’s capacity for love, compassion and courage.” Her final words to the audience, however, were the most emotional and left Groepper teary-eyed and choked up. “You will know what it means to be human, and you will know what it means to be humane,” she said. The two senior class speakers, Katie Kula and Lydia Christoffersen, had strong words of their own, both showing praise and admiration for the preparation Mount Mercy has given them for the future. “Professionalism was always expected,” said Kula. “Superior work was always anticipated.” Although Christoffersen commented that the journey at Mount Mercy had its ups and downs, in the end, she said, it was all worthwhile. “Knowing we were part of a top notch nursing program, one of the best in the Midwest, makes all the struggles worth it,” she said. |
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Pinning Keynote Speaker Linda Groepper, associate professor of nursing, and Dr. Mary Tarbox, chair of the nursing division, react with emotion as students applaud Groepper’s moving speech. (Hannah Snyder/Times) |
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Lydia Christoffersen, one of two student speakers, addresses her fellow nursing seniors using the language of the journey students have been on. (Hannah Snyder/Times) |
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Michelle Foster (left) and Brenna Duffy (right) react as they receive their nursing pin and flower during the pinning ceremony. Faculty keynote speaker Linda Groepper looks on. (Hannah Snyder/Times) |
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Megan Freeseman has just received her nursing pin. (Jill McDowell/Times) |
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Speaker Katie Kula spoke about her experiences with the nursing faculty during her pinning speech. (Jill McDowell/Times) |