TWU nursing graduate Kalisse Barwich (BSN ’17) was featured in the Aldergrove Star earlier this year for her work inside a 24-bed Rohinga care unit in Bangladesh. According to the story by Troy Landreville published Jan 17, 2018, Samaritan’s Purse Canada deployed medical personnel to Bangladesh to help the refugees. In reflecting on her experience working with Rohingya refugees and the discrimination they have faced, Barwich noted that as a nurse she has “the opportunity to not only care for people physically, but also emotionally and spiritually … to show people that they have value.” Her message reflects a core belief taught in the TWU Nursing program – Imago Dei: All persons are made in God’s image; beloved, worthy of dignity and compassion.
Barwich is one of a number of TWU nursing alumni who have caught media attention in recent years for the extension of their compassionate reach. Motivated by “a desire to meet the world’s deepest needs by providing nursing care,” these nurses are “typical of the kind of student TWU attracts,” according to TWU Dean of Nursing, Dr. Sonya Grypma. In 2017 the journal Convivium featured a story on TWU nursing alum Emily Way (’16) who had recently returned from Iraq where she, like Barwich, worked in a Samaritan’s Purse field hospital near the besieged city of Mosul. In the story by Hannah Marazzi published on 25 July 2017, Emily noted, “I saw how the Kingdom of God was made manifest by the actions of my co-workers…It did not matter to us if you were a civilian, an ex-pat, Iraqi, Syrian or Kurdish, a member of militia, Iraqi Special Forces, or perhaps even ISIL. The love and grace of the Lord was demonstrated to them.” Samaritan’s Purse also attracted Taryne Lepp (BSN, ’09) who traveled to Haiti in the wake of the 2010 Earthquake.
In addition to Samaritan’s Purse, there is also an ongoing connection between TWU Nursing and Mercy Ships. Some of our students in past years worked on the Mercy Ships before becoming nurses and were inspired to study at TWU at the encouragement of TWU alumni working on Mercy Ships. Some of these whose stories on are the ‘web include Brian Drebert (’06), Hannah (Hoffman '06) Calvert, Trudi Attema (’06), Karin (Larson ’07) Benson and Laura Ziulkowski (’05) who were on the Mercy Ships together, and Stephanie V (’15) who is currently serving on Mercy Ships. The work is invaluable. As Stephanie writes, one of her patients said to her through a translator “Thank you for all you and Mercy Ships have done. Thank you for treating me like you would your own daughter. The love I have received here, I have never known.”
Think deeply. Act justly. Care generously. TWU Nursing.