Kansas City's Nurse Honor Guard takes on solemn duty to comfort families of nurses
The nurse honor guard takes on solemn duty to comfort families of nurses
The nurse honor guard takes on solemn duty to comfort families of nurses
The nurse honor guard takes on solemn duty to comfort families of nurses
Five women from the Nurse Honor Guard of Kansas City on Monday morning performed a ceremony at the memorial service of a fellow nurse.
Celia Carter, 78, established the first AIDS clinic at Kansas City’s Trinity Lutheran Hospital.
She spent her life caring for others.
Monday, the honor guard nurses wanted to show their care to Carter’s family.
Her family requested the Nurse Honor Guard of Kansas City at the memorial service in Buckner on Monday morning. KMBC 9 was invited to follow the group as it performed its 18th ceremony since forming last year.
The honor guard’s efforts have taken off over the past year around the Kansas City metro area as more families have requested the group’s ceremony services.
During a typical ceremony, a representative will read about the nurse’s career, and a prayer or poem is read. The group presents a white rose to the urn or casket and then performs a call to duty. In the end, a candle is extinguished and a lamp with a candle is presented to the nurse’s family.
The honor guard began as an idea between two nurses in the neonatal intensive care unit at Children’s Mercy Hospital.
They both had co-workers who died, one in 2019 and the other in 2021. They wanted to honor their friends’ lives, and the idea for the Nurse Honor Guard took off.
Now, the group performs at ceremonies across the Kansas City metro at families’ request.
“We're there on the good days, the bad days, the fun, the sad, we're there through all of it,” Nurse Honor Guard of Kansas City co-founder Christin Mayfield said.
Mayfield also said the group served as a rallying point for nurses during the effects of the pandemic.
Co-founder Amy Sloan said the group has grown to 115 members across the Kansas City region.
“To be able to honor someone who's given their whole life to nursing. I would want that for my funeral. Because a nurse isn't just a job, it's something that you give it your whole life and your whole self to,” Sloan said.
To learn more about the Nurse Honor Guard of Kansas City, including ways to participate, email nursehonorguardofkc@outlook.com. You can also find the group’s GoFundMe here to help pay for expenses.