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Nurse Of The Quarter: Connecticut Nurses Honor Guard Unite to Pay Tribute to Fallen Nurses
By April Rowe, BSN, RN
VOLUNTEER NURSES UNITE TO PAY TRIBUTE TO NURSING COLLEAGUES AT THE TIME OF THEIR DEATHS
NURSES ARE KNOWN for their unwavering compassion and dedication to serving their communities. When many nurses spend their downtime recuperating from long, stressful work days, Honor Guard Nurses volunteer their well-deserved time off to pay tribute to fallen colleagues.
The Connecticut Nurses Honor Guard embodies the true spirit of caring for others well beyond the bedside. They selflessly gather together to honor nurses who have passed away, ensuring that their nursing legacy is celebrated through a heartfelt and endearing ceremony. Their charitable contribution to our nursing community is well worth recognition.
WHAT IS A NURSING HONOR GUARD?
The National Nurses Honor Guard Coalition is a nonprofit organization with state and local chapters. Its members consist of volunteer nurses, working or retired, who perform The Nightingale Tribute and Final Call of Duty at funerals to honor and recognize the memory of nursing colleagues.
Similar to military tributes, the volunteer nurses gather, wearing their traditional white uniforms, complete with a nursing cap and cape, to perform the ceremony and officially release the nurse from their duties. These compassionate volunteers symbolize the essence of what it means to be a nurse — selfless dedication, empathy, and a deep sense of duty towards others.
A TOUCHING TRIBUTE TO FALLEN NURSES
Nursing Honor Guards exemplify how nurses go above and beyond to support one another and show respect for those who have dedicated their lives to serving others. Their free volunteer service not only honors the memory of their fellow nurses but also serves as a touching reminder of the strong bonds within the nursing community.
It’s important to celebrate and honor the nurse’s dedication, and during the ceremonies, all their friends and family get to hear what that nurse did in their career. - SHELLEY BAYER
The Connecticut Nurses Honor Guard recognizes and celebrates the incredible contributions that nurses make every day. Two members, Shelley Bayer, BSN, RN (a labor & birth nurse) and Maria Cusano-Sanzo, DNP, RN (a retired pediatric nurse and educator), described their volunteer work within their chapter and what it truly means to be an honor guard nurse.
Maria was one of two other women who started the first chapter of the Connecticut Nurses Honor Guard in 2021. Since then, they have grown to nearly 180 members and have completed almost 300 tributes. Shelley explained, “We’ve grown so quickly because we go to the services of nurses, and invariably, there are nurses there; they see what we do, and they want to join us.”
The volunteers consist of retired and working nurses. Even nursing students are welcome to join. “We perform in funeral homes, churches, and at the graveside. We go wherever the family invites us to go, and we are honored to be there,” said Shelley.
Shelley described the ceremonies: “As we [proceed] into the area, we line up, and the first person in line has a ceramic lamp with a lit candle in it, like a Nightingale lamp, and someone has a white rose, another person carries a triangle, and we have a card for the family. We give the lamp and the card to the family, and as part of the ceremony, we present the white rose to our colleague to show our honor and appreciation, either placing it in or on the casket or adding it to a bouquet.”
Maria added, “We’ve also done them at restaurants [and pubs] where they have a celebration of life. Wherever we are needed, we fulfill the mission to provide comfort to the family. We have a lot of volunteers to make it all work, and they are absolutely amazing. The amount of dedication that these men and women have is just heartwarming.”
NOT JUST FUNERALS: PROVIDING VARIOUS SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY
Last year, their Nurses Honor Guard won the Connecticut Nurses Association Public Service Award for their tireless dedication to the community. Not only do they perform tributes at funeral services but they also have done modified tributes at flag ceremonies for National Nurses Week. They may even be asked to attend a nurse’s retirement celebration or nursing achievement ceremonies, and even march during parades.
Following the murder of a Connecticut nurse during a home visit, the honor guard performed a tribute at her funeral and then later marched on the capitol to promote safer working conditions for home care nurses. Their commitment to honoring and advocating for nurses continues beyond their tribute ceremonies.
National Nurses Honor guard
To donate, volunteer, or start an honor guard
in your area, reach out to:
Julia Godby Murray, RN
Founder/President/Coordinator of the
National Nurses Honor Guard Coalition
jmury581@gmail.com
Connecticut Nurses Honor Guard
Donate or learn more about the
Connecticut Nurses Honor Guard at:
ctnurseshonorguard.org
SOLILOQUY OF A NURSE’S CAPE
BY MARIA CUSANO-SANZO, DNP, RN
My collar encircles her neck, holding her head up high as she enters a patient’s room, proud to be entrusted with their care. Her eyes notice jaundice, pallor, cyanosis and sadness. Her ears listen to breath sounds, heartbeats, cries of the newborn and cries of pain. Her nose smells infection and incontinence. Her brain juggles time management, medication side effects, social, religious and economic concerns.
My collar has absorbed her tears as she mourns the passing of another patient to whom she became close. On that same collar are pins earned at the expense of family gatherings, weekends and Christmas mornings.
My shoulders cover hers as they carry the weight of the responsibility of caring for someone's loved one.
I cover her heart; kind, giving, empathetic and sympathetic, always putting someone else’s needs before her own.
I cover her arms, used to hug and comfort someone in pain or who is afraid. Or straight, elbows extended, performing chest compressions.
I cover her hands, comforting, caressing, stroking a patient with dementia who thinks she is his daughter; her hands that feel for a warm forehead, a swollen joint, a prickly rash.
I cover her fingers that feel for a pulse, palpate a vein, perform CPR on an infant.
I try to envelop her and protect her but I can never succeed; she is too vulnerable, too valuable, too kind.
She doesn’t have an S emblazoned on her chest, but she does wear a cape because she IS a hero.
DONATIONS MAKE IT POSSIBLE
Donations are essential in supporting the mission of the National Nurses Honor Guard. “We work mainly off of donations. Many of the family members often want to donate to our group. The money goes to buying supplies like the lamps,” explained Shelley.
Maria added, “Some family members donate their mother’s capes to us, and some of our volunteers wear their mother’s or grandmother’s capes which bring such authenticity to the ceremonies. If capes could talk!” Imagine being an honor guard nurse and having the privilege of wearing your great-grandmother’s cape and cap — what a beautiful experience!
The amount of dedication that these men and women have is just heartwarming.
“It’s important to honor the work that nurses do, no matter if they’re living or dead. It’s important to celebrate and honor the nurse’s dedication, and during the ceremonies, all their friends and family get to hear what that nurse did in their career,” said Shelley.
To support this meaningful cause or to learn more about the Nurses Honor Guard, consider making a donation or reaching out to your local chapter to see how you can get involved. Your contribution can help ensure that our fallen healthcare heroes receive the recognition they deserve for their invaluable service and dedicating their lives to caring for others.
