Brian Leahy Memorial Scholarship

Brian Leahy and his family inspired me more than anyone else to continue on with my Nursing Education. I was a caregiver for Brian for the last three months of his life and was lucky enough to see him at his best and was able to obtain a good rapport with him. I was just starting my CNA job when I came across Brian. After working there for a few weeks, I was praised and told "This is the career for you" and "You're right where you need to be" by my work colleagues, family, and friends. Coming from another career background where I was unhappy this meant a lot and gave me the push that I needed. Amongst doing school and working, sometimes it can be difficult to gain that understanding and clarification because it gets challenging. Brian and his family were the ones to push me and encourage me during my time there and truly became my motivating force. Currently, I am pursuing Nursing as my future career because I love being around and helping people. I first started home healthcare a few months ago and quickly gained a good rapport with some of my patients, and colleagues. Getting to know them and seeing how I make an impact on both the patient as a whole and the families, and how it made me feel solidified that I was on the right career path for me. There is nothing like being the person someone looks forward to seeing daily and the satisfaction of knowing you're the "good" in someone's day. Seeing progress and improvement and knowing I played a part in the progress made it such a reward in itself. Nursing has always been at the forefront of my mind. Between school and being a CNA I have been able to acquire numerous skills and bedside manners that I wouldn't have obtained without support and dedication even when things get hard. Recently, I have started clinical, which has also clarified my decision to go into Nursing. I love the fast-paced environment and being able to connect with my patients on a personal level to develop good patient-centered care. With each patient I encounter the drive to help and make them as comfortable as possible increasingly gets bigger. I know I am on the right path for me, I just have to seek it out until the end. There is no greater reward than knowing you made an impact on someone's life, and you were a part of their progress! That is what Nursing is about and why I am striving to become the best Nurse I can be!