Story: Lisa Sollie | Photo: Cody Ingram
Mike Williams, Mayor of Butler, Alabama, and his sister, Patricia Williams Harris, had been looking for a way to honor their mother, Joan Kuehl Williams, a registered nurse and graduate of St. Joseph School of Nursing in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Through a series of providential meetings, the brother and sister recently partnered with the Alabama Nurses Foundation (ANF) and representatives John Beard, president of the board of trustees, and Dr. John Ziegler, executive director, to gift the University of West Alabama Foundation a $50,000 endowment for the Joan Williams and Alabama Nurses Foundation Nursing Scholarship. The endowment will award an annual $2500 scholarship to a junior or senior nursing student in the Ira D. Pruitt Division of Nursing.
“We can’t thank ANF enough for partnering with us on this endowment,” noted Williams. “When our mom began her nursing career at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Marshfield, she would often share stories about the veterans she treated from World War I, II, and the Korean conflict. After moving to Butler, Alabama, in 1958, she continued her passion for nursing at Barber Hospital, where she worked as a surgical nurse, went out on ambulance calls, and helped deliver more than 800 babies.”
According to Ziegler, the ANF has partnered with individuals and families like Williams and his sister to establish endowment funds at eight colleges and schools of nursing across the state. “UWA,” Ziegler noted, “is the ninth.”
These collaborations are made possible through purchases of the “Nurses Save Lives” specialty car tag in Alabama. As part of this collaboration, ANF is offering UWA nursing faculty and recent program graduates, as well as all Alabama colleges and schools of nursing where ANF has a scholarship partner relationship, a $50 gift card in appreciation for the time they took to apply and purchase their tag. “Their purchase,” he added, “will not only add to the over 12,000 car tags currently on the road, but also help us support nurses and the nursing profession throughout the state.” Instructions for submitting proof of purchase are available to UWA students, faculty and staff through the Division of Nursing.
Dr. John Ziegler, Chris Theroit, Dr. Mary Hanks, Dr. J.J. Wedgworth, Mike Williams and John Beard enjoy a visit in Spieth Hall, on the University of West Alabama Campus.
“I know I speak on behalf of the nursing faculty and staff when I say how excited and grateful we are to Mayor Williams and his sister, Patricia, as well as John Beard and Dr. John Ziegler with ANF, for this generous gift,” said Dr. Mary Hanks, chair of the Ira D. Pruitt Division of Nursing. “We also greatly appreciate Chris Theriot with the Division of Institutional Advancement and Office of Sponsored Programs & Research, along with Dr. J.J. Wedgworth, vice president of institutional advancement at UWA, for making it happen. This scholarship will make a tremendous difference for a very deserving student.”
To learn more about scholarship opportunities, contact Dr. J.J. Wedgworth in the UWA Development Office at (205) 652-5459 or email jwedgworth@uwa.edu.