Volume 5, Issue 7

In This Issue: Letter from the President | Feature Articles | Making the Most of Your Membership
Learn more about service in this issue of Create the Future.

Letter from the President

Dear honor society members,

The theme for this issue of Create the Future is service. Service is defined by Google (2008) as work done by one person or group that benefits another. I would suggest, however, that the individual providing the service often receives as much joy in giving and helping as the individual(s) who is the recipient of the intended benefit. Albert Schweitzer apparently felt the same in his assertion that “the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve” (Lewis, 1995-2006).

 There are so many wonderful examples of individuals who have contributed their time and energy to serving others. Recently, I came across a story in an airflight magazine about Wayne Elsey, the former chief executive officer of Kodiak Shoes, who was so moved by the plight of the 2004 Asian tsunami victims that he rallied other footwear executives to donate more than 250,000 pairs of shoes for tsunami survivors (Changing the World, 2008). When Hurricane Katrina hit, he sent 750,000 shoes to the Gulf coast. Now retired, he runs Soles4Souls, a non-profit organization that gives away a pair of shoes to people in need every 28 seconds. His goal is to be giving away a pair of shoes every 14 seconds by the end of this year.

Many chapters within the honor society are actively involved in providing service for individuals in need.  Beta Xi at the University of Delaware in Newark, Del. is a proud sponsor of the Special Olympics of Delaware, serves as the exclusive provider of tutoring for the School of Nursing for no charge, is sponsoring a scholarship to provide support to complete a foreign health aid trip (the Global Ambassador Program) and partners with community organizations to provide gifts to the chronically mentally ill during holiday seasons. Beta Xi also partners with local schools and community organizations, including the Girl Scouts, to provide information and experiential learning that helps children and adolescents develop a positive image of nursing as a profession. Wow!

In 2005, Epsilon Eta chapter at Southern Illinois University in Edwardsville, Ill. launched a campaign to raise money to bring clean water to a village in South Africa by funding a pipeline – by either building a well or having water piped from a larger source. Since then, they received contributions from the Pi Pi Chapter at Blessing-Rieman School of Nursing in Quincy, Ill. and an additional large donation in honor of a new inductee. Water bottle sales at the school of nursing continue to provide the main source of income. There is about US $2000 in the fund.

Nu Xi chapter at Samuel Merritt College in Oakland, Calif. worked together in 2006 to assemble gift packages of toiletries for local homeless shelters. Over 200 gift packets were distributed at the Project Homeless Connect event in downtown Oakland. In addition, socks were donated by members and given to the homeless who attended the opening of the winter shelter on the army base.

Gamma Xi chapter, at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock, Ark., has teamed up with Camp Quality for more than five years to provide Christmas for children surviving cancer and their families. In addition, Gamma Xi participates in Habitat for Humanity, The Heifer Project, volunteers at local homeless shelters and the Special Olympics.

The Theta Xi chapter of College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn., year after year, holds a fudge sale and car washes to support travel for 12 students (on average) to work in health clinics, orphanages, and other needy areas in Tanzania, Africa and to pay for teaching and medical supplies. The students who travel with Sister Beverly Raway, a long time honor member, collaborate with the Benedictine Sisters of St. Agnes.

Similarly, Beta Nu chapter, at East Carolina University (ECU) in Greenville, N.C. sent 13 ECU nursing students and two nursing faculty to Guatemala in 2008 to live, work and learn about the Mayan and Ladino cultures. The goal was to establish a partnership between ECU College of Nursing and an indigenous Mayan community to ensure on-going community health outreach projects and to sensitize future nurses to the cultural needs of one of the many Ladino populations living in the US.  Financial support for the students was available from the Thomas Rivers International Fund and the Medical & Health Sciences Foundation International Endowment Fund.

Kappa Omicron chapter, at California State University in Chico, Calif. has just launched a service project in collaboration with local primary schools to do multiple fundraising initiatives for Community Outreach Centres – a “no-frills non-governmental organization” dedicated to reducing poverty in rural, western Kenya. In 2006, 97 percent of funds received went directly to projects. This organization can treat 400 children a day at an average cost of US $0.03 per child. 

Even honor society regions have come together in their efforts to provide service. In 2006, 21 of the 23 chapters in Region 3 contributed US $2600 towards a container of surplus medical supplies and equipment for a nursing school and hospital in Yetebon, Ethiopia. This was done as part of Project C.U.R.E. – a non-profit humanitarian relief organization that collects medical supplies and equipment and donates it to developing countries. Project C.U.R.E.’s newest effort is the Spotlight Container Project, which allows individuals or groups to give supplies directly to a container that is ready to ship. The first Spotlight Container is going to Vietnam.

These are just a few examples of the many chapters who consistently and generously make service a part of their chapters’ mission. I am sure there are hundreds more who could and should be recognized here. I encourage you to submit your stories about how your chapter is involved in service to the honor society by filling out a Community Service Star form on the honor society Web site. This will give other chapters who want to be more involved in service projects the opportunity to see what types of things are being done.

Jay Rasulo, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, suggests “everyone has the opportunity, though perhaps not as obviously as he does, to make magic for people” (The Business of Magic, 2008, p. 17). I agree and believe this is especially true for nurses.  Doing even small things can make such a difference in the lives of others. I encourage all members and chapters to consider being more involved in local, regional, national or international service projects as a means of making a difference.

Carol J. Huston
Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International
2007-2009 President

Feature Articles

Service and learning in the Dominican Republic
by Jane Palmer

Members of a humanitarian mission discover the other side of paradise. Read the article.

Partnerships Aid Afghan Nurses

Board Matters
Stay up-to-date on board of director activities and initiatives by reading a summary of the June 2008 honor society board meeting.

Member Profile
Honor society member Lorrie R. Davis-Dick, RN, MSN, BC reflects on the importance of mentoring throughout her nursing career and for the future of diversity in nursing. Read the profile.