Four young women have been awarded 2009 American Legion Post #614 Nursing Scholarships, according to Bill Gossett, adjutant. He said the awarding of these awards was made possible due to the community’s several generous monetary donations to the scholarship fund. The recipients are: Chelsea Peterson, Jenna Casteel, Rachel Stamper and Abbey R. Twomey.

 Chelsea is re-applying for the scholarship as she begins her junior year at Western Illinois University, Macomb. She will taking 16-credit hours of pre-requisite courses for the nursing program. 

“The scholarship will help with expenses and I am grateful for your past support,” she said.

 “Achieving an education is always a collaborative effort that results in both parties benefiting. Although the return from your monetary assistance is not seen now, in the future the turnover of your investment will be my service to society as a Registered Nurse,” Chelsea added.

 Jenna is 24 years old, married to J.R. Casteel, who together have an 18-month-old son, J.D, their pride and joy. Born in Macomb, she moved to Roseville three years ago after meeting J.R. She has a sister who is an RN and is working at Blessing Hospital in Quincy. Jenna has accepted an offer to attend the Blessing-Riemann School of Nursing.

 She will continue working part-time as a C.N.A, and her husband will be working full-time, so this scholarship will help her tremendously. Jenna was seriously injured in a car accident in 2007, and after two months in the hospital she said she really saw what the nursing field was like. After deciding nursing was for her, she learned she suffered tremors on her right side. Together they’ve managed to overcome the challenges.

 “I have been a nurses aide for four years, working in geriatrics. After I get my LPN, I would like to eventually work in a doctor’s office or a hospital where you would see changes every day.”

 With this scholarship, she will not only be helping herself but she will be helping her family and others.

 Rachel Stamper is from Highland and is one of 13 children. She has known since she was a child that she wanted to be a nurse. Last fall she was accepted into the nursing program at Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville. Since then she moved to Abingdon with her fiancé, and has been accepted into the nursing program at Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg starting this fall. 

 Rachel is currently a nurse’s aide at OSF Holy Family Medical Center in Monmouth. 

“I am really enjoying the one-on-one experience with patients. My nurses are great about answering questions and showing me things along the way,” she said. 

She recommends that nursing students work hard as aides, because that’s how she found out that she wanted to be a nurse. 

“My job is deeply rewarding. I would be honored to be considered for the nursing scholarship,” she said.

 Abbey R. Twomey believes that someone once said “Nurses are the heartbeat of healthcare,” because nurses seem to be a constant in a patient’s life. She plans to start a two-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Lakeview College of Nursing in Danville. A career in nursing was made by working in the service industry, where she gained extensive knowledge about life and helping others, working as a retail pharmacist and traveling.

 “The first reason I have chosen nursing is the interaction with individuals as you are helping to make their experience in your care as comfortable as possible. As a nurse I will be able to do that. As many hospitals have been forced to go on hiring freezes, due to the economy, this work will allow me to work in other parts of the world if nothing else is available when I graduate. A career in nursing will allow me to dive deeper into helping under nourished children and helping people and traveling the world,” she said.

“I would like to be considered for the scholarship because unlike my four years at the University of Illinois; my schedule will be too busy to allow time for a full-time job. With this being my first semester in the program there are also extra costs. Thank you for your time and consideration,” she added.