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Y
olanda Worthy has every reason to be filled with sor-
row. In 2007, she and twin sister Zandra were serving
in the U.S. Army when their little sister, Katrina, died from
a brain tumor.The twins came home to comfort their griev-
ing mother, and then returned to duty.That was in June.
Two months later, Yolanda woke up one morning and knew
something bad had happened. She soon learned Zandra had
been killed by a rocket-propelled grenade in Iraq.
A year later, her enlistment was up and she knew she had
to come home. “My mother needed me,” says Yolanda. Like
many returning veterans, she was un-
sure about her future. “I knew I wanted
to do something to help people,” she
says. “I wanted to make a difference.”
Yolanda began thinking about all the
people who had cared for Katrina dur-
ing her long illness. “She always told
me about the people at the hospital, the
people at the doctors’ offices, and how
they offered so much compassion and
concern. She said once she got better,
she wanted to be a nurse. I decided that
since she would never get the chance, I
would do it for her.”
Soon after, Yolanda enrolled at ECPI
University’s Greenville campus. “I was
so scared,” she says. “I wasn’t sure if I
could handle the accelerated pace but
the faculty was just great. My teachers
made every effort to make sure we understood what we
were learning.They were determined to make sure that no
one was left behind.”
Early on, people on campus noticed there was something
special about Yolanda, something so positive and uplifting.
Her fellow students noticed.They elected her class leader.
Faculty noticed. She received a number of honors, includ-
ing the Academic Excellence Award, Kaplan Achievement
Award, and Perfect Clinical Attendance Award. “Yolanda
is a very compassionate and dedicated nurse who received
many compliments from the nursing
staff at all of her clinical sites,” says
Campus Director of Nursing Marjorie
Hedl.
While Yolanda is flattered, she is slow
to take credit, acknowledging the two
people who most inspire her. “My
sisters would not want me to be sad.
They would want me to move forward
and make the most out of my life and
to do my best to help others.”
Yolanda is most certainly moving
forward. She’s already working at St.
Francis Health Systems in Greenville
and is planning to earn a bachelor’s
and master’s degree with the goal of
one day teaching. “I want to practice
for about 10 years first so I can bring
some real experience to the classroom,
just like my teachers at ECPI.”
“She always told me about the
people at the hospital, the people
at the doctors’ offices, and how
they offered so much compas-
sion and concern. She said once
she got better, she wanted to be
a nurse. I decided that since she
would never get the chance, I
would do it for her.”
- Yolanda Worthy
Nursing Graduate
Greenville Graduate Moves
beyond Tragedy to Inspire
and Serve Others
More than
Worthy