Bucks County Nurses Honor Guard Pays Tribute To 'Angels In White'
BUCKS COUNTY, PA —They are Angels in White.They appear in hospitals and doctor's offices to tend to the sick, taking temperatures, monitoring heart rates and blood pressure, and providing a gentle touch to some who need it the most.They made sacrifices during the pandemic, putting their lives on the line and serving as the last human contact by holding the hand of someone who died from Covid 19.It's National Nurses Week. The week begins each year on May 6 and ends on May 12, Florence Nightingale's birthday, giving these special caretakers national recognition.But there is another group of nurses in Bucks County —a group who honor the "angels in white."The Bensalem-based Bucks County Nurses Honor Guard offers free tributes to fallen nurses and even living tributes to honor nurses who work in one of the toughest fields on the planet. The group is one of 17 in Pennsylvania and among 350 groups in the nation and in Canada.The Bucks County group was founded by Theresa Conejo, a nurse of 39 years at St. Mary's Medical Center.In an interview with Patch this week, Conejo said the idea came to her after attending a nurse's funeral and one of a firefighter."My mentor had passed," said Conejo, 64, who has been married for nearly 25 years and has a son and two granddaughters. "They said she was a wonderful mother and wife. But there was not one mention of her being a nurse. She was at the hospital more than she was ever home."After seeing how fire companies honored their brethren, Conejo decided "we need something for nurses."She reached out to a woman in Lansing, Michigan, who was doing tributes to nurses in the full traditional garb of white uniforms, shoes and stockings, a white cap, and a red cape.So Conejo grabbed a few friends and launched the Bucks County chapter in 2021.The group's first tribute was on May 1, 2021.The group formed with four nurses and now has 18 members, half of whom are active nurses. They live in Bensalem, Croydon, Levittown, Yardley, Northeast Philadelphia, and Lansdale in Montgomery County.Conejo said the group has performed more than 30 tributes in the region and plans to attend a conference in Kentucky this month that is the first conference for the coalition.The National Nurses Honor Guard Coalition is presenting the first National Nurses Honor Guard conference and hopes to make the group's existence known throughout the country."We hope to bring needed awareness to the public who may not know this service is available for their loved ones," the coalition stated in a press release. "We also want to reach other nurses who may want to join a group in their area."The Kansas State Nurses Association did the first ceremony in 2003. Julia Godby Murray RN discovered it and wanted this to be available for any nurse in the nation. In 2011, she began to organize groups around the country. The coalition said the service is similar to ones done by the military, fire, and police departments. It wants families to know this volunteer organization is available to them at no cost when they are planning a fallen nurse’s funeral or memorial service.Dressed in traditional white uniforms, the nurse guards attend the funeral or memorial services for a nurse who has passed. They perform a short ceremony similar to honor their colleagues, carrying a lit Nightingale lamp and proceed to the front of the room and honor their life as a nurse. A final “call to duty” is done by calling the nurse’s name three times and ringing a triangle or chime. When the nurse does not respond they state “We officially release you from your nursing duties.” They extinguish the lamp and assure them that their colleagues will take it from there. "Nurses are healers and this ceremony is very healing for the family that has lived the demands required of a nurse through their lives," the coalition said. "The ceremony also heals the hearts of the Nurses Honor Guard members as it brings back the dignity and respect for our profession that has been challenged recently, especially during Covid 19. Nurses did not walk away and risked their lives as they continued to care for their patients during this pandemic. Family members and those in attendance are always very touched and appreciative of the volunteer nurses who perform this ceremony."The members of the Nurses Honor Guard volunteer their time and rely on donations and fundraising to be able to provide these services. Many groups provide scholarships for nursing students and participate in community activities.Conejo said she loves leading the guard and putting on the traditional garb."It does give me a great sense of pride when I put that on," she said. "We work very hard at what we do.(Nurse Honor Guards of Bucks County) The article Bucks County Nurses Honor Guard Pays Tribute To 'Angels In White' appeared first on Bensalem, PA Patch.
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