Womack celebrates U.S. Army Nurses Corps 119th birthday

Photo By Twana Atkinson | Col. John Melton, the Womack Army Medical Center commander, talks with retired Army nurses during the Army Nurse Corps 119th birthday celebration Jan. 31.  

FORT BRAGG, NC, UNITED STATES

01.30.2020

Story by Twana Atkinson 

Womack Army Medical Center

FORT BRAGG, N.C. - Womack Army Medical Center staff and the Deputy Chief of the Army Nurse Corps Col. Lozay Foots III took time out to salute the U.S. Army Nurses Corps 119th birthday Jan 31.
Army nurses from retired to active filled the WAMC conference room to celebrate this day in history with a commemorative video, guest speakers, and fellowship.
The gathering began with remarks from Foots describing the passion of the Army nurse.
“I can look out into the audience….. many eyes burn bright with enthusiasm, energy, eagerness and talent,” said Foots. “This year’s theme ‘Ready to Lead Ready to Care since 1901’ I think speaks to who we are as a corps.”
The U. S. Army Nurse Corps began as a provision service of basic hygiene and housekeeping measures and remained a domestic service until WWI.
From as early as the Revolutionary War, there have been nurses treating front line Soldiers in battle. While nurses, at this time, were only being paid $2 a day and given one meal a day, their love and devotion for the service was paramount.
“In my many years of an Army nurse corps leader…... I’ve literally observed blood, sweat and the tears of our nurses,” said Foots.
In the audience, retired Col. Deborah Betts recounts her time as an Army nurse and the love and passion that she had for the corps.
“I remember serving at the old Walter Reed Medical Center during 9/11 and all of the support that we provided to the Pentagon,” said Betts. “It’s an extreme honor to be a member of the corps.
The Army Nurses Corps was formally established by Congress in 1901. Nurses could serve in the active Army but not as commissioned officers.
During WWI, there were 403 active duty nurses and more than 20,000 that served without the active status.
Congress officially established the Army Nurse Corps into the Medical Department of the regular Army in 1947, allowing permanent commissioned officers.
There has been an army nurse that has served in every campaign dated back to the Revolutionary War.
Col. John Melton, the Womack Army Medical Center commander, also expressed his gratitude for the Army nurses but more specifically the Womack nurses, whom take care of the most elite Soldiers in the United States Army, the 82nd Airborne and the U.S. Special Forces and their families.
“The most powerful weapon system in your Army will always be the American Soldier and your job is to make sure that every Soldier is physically and cognitively ready and proficient in their wartime skills,” stated Melton.
The event ended with nurses and Womack leadership taking part in light
refreshments and cake and sharing stories of the days old and new.

• Date Taken: 01.30.2020
• Date Posted: 02.05.2020 10:05
• Story ID: 361777
• Location: FORT BRAGG, NC, US