In celebration of Canada's National Nursing Week in May, we’re highlighting stories of TWU alumni who are using their training to bring healing, compassion, and Christ-like care to communities around the world.
For Joel and Courtney, both graduates of TWU’s School of Nursing, the journey has taken them from Canadian hospitals to southern Uganda, places where nursing is not just a profession, but a calling to serve with humility, courage, and love.
“Every time I step onto the Ugandan school, it just feels like, ‘Okay, I’m home.’”
– Joel Dyck
Courtney and Joel both felt called to nursing, a profession that blends skill, compassion, and service. While studying in TWU’s School of Nursing, their paths crossed during a 2019 Global Projects trip to Uganda. Joel had grown up there, serving with his family’s ministry, Kuwasha, and Courtney was part of the visiting student team. From that moment on, their shared heart for healthcare and ministry began to shape a story rooted in faith, purpose, and global impact. Courtney completed her degree in 2020, and Joel completed his in 2024.
Called to Care
For Joel, nursing was a natural outgrowth of his childhood. “Growing up in Uganda in a rural area, I was trying to find a way that I could directly impact people’s lives,” he said. “I was able to see first-hand the impact that nurses can have especially in Uganda, where healthcare access is so limited.”
Courtney’s path was just as purposeful. “My mom was a nurse, and she took me to the hospital one day. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do in high school, but I decided to try student nursing,” she said. “Trinity helped give a little more purpose to that. It helped me see how nursing can be used to serve God and bless people.”
From Classroom to Critical Care
Today, Courtney works in ICU and Joel in the neonatal department, where he cares for premature babies, some so fragile that even their parents are afraid to touch them.
“Often, I’ll meet a family for the first time and they’ll say, ‘Can I touch her?’ and I’ll say, ‘Yes, you can absolutely touch her,’” Joel shares. “Those simple connection points, like encouraging a parent to speak or place their hand on their baby, are huge. They don’t take a lot of effort on my end, but they’re deeply impactful.”
For Courtney, many of the most meaningful moments in ICU happen at the end of life. “It’s kind of the hardest,” she said, “but I feel really honoured to care for people and their families at that time. If I can provide peace and relief, I’m grateful for that.”
A Holistic Vision of Nursing
Both credit TWU’s Nursing program with shaping not just their skills, but their outlook.
“TWU teaches you to look at the whole person, not just what’s medically wrong,” Joel said. “I think it produces really kind and compassionate nurses. You can tell when you work with them; they genuinely care.”
Courtney agrees: “Without TWU, I wouldn’t have been exposed to Kuwasha. That trip showed me how my nursing skills could be used in totally different settings from an ICU here to a rural backyard there.”
Kuwasha: More Than a Clinic
Joel’s family, the Dycks, started Kuwasha as a small school in southern Uganda, but it has grown into something much more: a community hub with over 250 staff and a wide range of services.
Kuwasha is a Christian organization that helps people through education, healthcare, clean water, farming, and job training. They support the Kibaale Community Centre, where children and families receive the care and tools they need to build a better future.
In 2024, Kuwasha helped over 24,000 patients, delivered 354 babies, served more than 824,000 meals, and gave 1,454 students a strong education. They also run special projects like the Timothy Girls High School, the Kuwasha Coffee Company, and the Thrive Gardens Program, which teach locals useful skills and create local jobs. Many of Kuwasha’s students have gone on to become teachers, doctors, lawyers, and business leaders all across Uganda.
“We have a school for students, social work, wells, agricultural projects, and a hospital that started as a clinic and is now the only health access for a four-hour radius,” Joel explains.
Though they live in Surrey now, the married couple has returned to Uganda multiple times. This spring marks Courtney’s fourth visit. In their first trip back as a married couple, the Kuwasha staff and students threw them a full Ugandan wedding. “They practiced for weeks,” Courtney laughed. “It was like, hours a day of rehearsals.”
“Every time I step back onto the property, it just feels like, okay, I’m home,” Joel said. “Even though life there can be hard, people are joyful. They have less, but they laugh more. They’re more gracious, more generous. It’s refreshing,” said Courtney.
A Growing Legacy
Now, the two are helping organize a new TWU nursing team to Uganda, a continuation of the very trip that first brought them together. “This is kind of a test year,” Joel explains. “We’re hoping it’ll become a regular part of the nursing program again. Maybe every year or two.”
The Kuwasha partnership is more than a service opportunity. It’s an invitation to understand joy, resilience, and the gospel in new ways.
“Ugandans will care for a stranger like they’re family,” Courtney says. “It’s a very faith-filled, community-oriented place. And I think that’s what creates such genuine joy.”
Joel and Courtney remain grounded in a bigger vision, one shaped by God’s love and lived out across continents. And they wouldn’t have it any other way.
As we honour nurses across Canada and beyond, stories like Joel and Courtney’s remind the TWU community that nursing goes far beyond clinics and charts. It’s about showing up: in ICUs, in classrooms, and in villages with hearts ready to listen, care, and serve.
During this Nursing Week, we celebrate the kind of quiet, powerful faith in action that Trinity’s nursing alumni continue to bring into the world every day.
Story by Netanya Castillo.
About TWU Alumni
We invite our alumni community to continue to participate in the life of the University. Our desire is to nurture an engaged and flourishing global community of alumni by cultivating meaningful relationships and creating engaging alumni experiences. Learn more at TWU Alumni.
About Trinity Western University
Founded in 1962, Trinity Western University is a global Christian liberal arts university. We are dedicated to equipping students to discover meaningful connections between career, life, and the needs of the world. Drawing upon the riches of the Christian tradition, seeking to unite faith and reason through teaching and scholarship, Trinity Western University is a degree-granting research institution offering liberal arts and sciences as well as professional schools in business, nursing, education, human kinetics, graduate studies, and arts, media, and culture. It has campuses in Canada in Langley, Richmond, and Ottawa. Learn more at www.twu.ca or follow us on Instagram @trinitywestern, Twitter @TrinityWestern, on Facebook and LinkedIn. For media inquiries, please contact: media@twu.ca.