Students, colleagues , and mentors gathered in the Brenau University East Whalen Auditorium to honor the three 2018 Masters in the Art of Nursing honorees Thursday morning.
This year's chosen registered nurse honorees, classified as "healers among us" by the University, are Evelyn Waugh, Eva Johnson and Dina Hewett.
Organizers added a new award to the event this year called the Mary Inez Grindle Recognition award and bestowed it on Waugh for her decades of service and innovation to the field of nursing.
Many attendees and several speakers said they thought of Waugh as a valuable mentor.
Susan Stone now works at Northeast Georgia Medical Center and accepted the newly-created award on behalf of her retired mentor, since Waugh was unable to attend due to her failing health.
In describing Waugh, Stone said, "This was her passion. She was a nurses' nurse and wanted them to be educated and passionate about their patients."
Deborah Bailey, Director of Government Affairs for the Northeast Georgia Medical Center, led a brief question and answer session with RN Eva Johnson, the heart failure disease manager for Northeast Georgia Health System, and RN Dina Hewett, director of the Mary Inez Grindle School of Nursing at Brenau, where they shared how their persistence and determination helped them achieve excellence in their careers.
Both of the honorees' spouses also attended the ceremony and spoke highly of their wives' accomplishments.
Chuck Hewett raved about his wife saying, "She's always been a teacher and she's always influenced younger lives. That's been one of her goals for her entire - for our entire life together - so far."
Mark Johnson said his wife doesn't seem to be slowing down any time soon. "I know she'd mentioned starting up clinics for the underserved and I think that would be a good thing to do and I'll be right along beside her."
Dr. Sandra Greniewicki from the Ivester College of Health Sciences has organized the event from its inception and became teary-eyed as her last year as chairman of the ceremony came to a close.
The ceremony ended as it usually does with a blessing of the hands by registered nurse and Rev. Dr. Debbie Huckaby.
