Thank you to all who shared photos and stories of nursing pins of their own, as well as loved ones. Below are the submissions received for the March 2025 issue of The Nursing Voice.
Lakeview College of Nursing, founded in 1894 in Danville, Illinois, has a long and rich history of preparing nurses for the profession. Over the years, our nursing pins have evolved, reflecting the growth and legacy of our institution while maintaining their deep symbolic meaning.
We are honored to share images of several historic nursing pins from Lakeview College of Nursing, including a pin from 1929, a time when the school was affiliated with Lakeview Hospital. We also have a pin from 1944, marking the college’s 50th anniversary, along with other pins leading up to that milestone. Each of these pins represents a generation of nurses who dedicated themselves to compassionate care and professional excellence. Today, Lakeview College of Nursing continues the cherished tradition of pinning each graduate as they transition into the nursing profession. As a special part of this ceremony, students may choose to be pinned by a Registered Nurse who is a family member, friend, or professor, symbolizing a warm welcome into the profession and a connection to the nurses who have come before them. I have not included the picture of my own nursing pin in this email because I find the historical pins from the college actually mean more to me than my own pin. I wear my pin at every pinning ceremony that I attend. And, yes, it means a lot to me. But, that is honestly the only time I wear it. It typically sits on my bookshelf attached to my nursing cap. Because, what means the most to me is that we are welcoming new nurses into the profession on that day. And, in my role as a nursing professor at Lakeview, I am proud that I am continuing to contribute to more than 130 years of welcoming nurses into the profession at Lakeview.
These pins serve as more than just a piece of jewelry; they are a tangible representation of the commitment, hard work, and passion that define a nurse’s journey. We are proud to share these pieces of history and celebrate the enduring legacy of nursing at Lakeview College of Nursing.
The most important pin in my life. It truly represents my life. This pin allowed me to provide life for others, while also providing for my life and family. I’ve worn this pin for 46 years (since 1979) and just retired on 2/14/25 after turning 70 in January. I also have another pin that represents an MS degree, however, this is the pin that made everything in my life possible and allowed me access into the lives of thousands of others – to help them with their lives as well.
Gary L.C. Reschak, MS, RN, CNN
I returned to college when I was 33 years old. I was married, had 3 children ages 4, 7, and 10. Not sure what I was thinking, how I was going to manage it, let alone, graduate!
I took it very slow, just one class at a time the first year. The second year, I applied to nursing school and was accepted. No more part time. School, homework, clinicals, lab study were my new life. Text books, nursing care plans, and a computer laptop covered any available table top I could find. I also took on a part time job to cover school expenses. Talk about stressful!
But a couple years later, I was at my pinning ceremony. Outside of marriage and giving birth, this was the most cherished accomplishment of my life. My pinning ceremony meant more than the college graduation ceremony. Afterwards, I proudly wore my pin to work. I was a new grad in the ER. I loved it! But only a few months later, I lost my pin. I was devastated. I felt like I lost the only physical proof of what I had accomplished. Time would pass and I would think less and less about that pin. Then, many years later, my 3 children gave me a gift. It was my Nurse pin (replaced, of course). On their own, they reached out to the college and ordered me a new pin. And, believe it or not, this new pin means even more to me than the 1st pin as this one came with a whole lot of love. I share a photo with you here (College of Lake County, nursing class of 1999) along with my nursing graduation photo proudly wearing my nurse cap!
Sincerely,
Laurie Behrendt RN
Attached are pictures of my nursing pins for my BSN, MSN, and DNP. I have also attached my mother’s first nursing pin from St. Joseph’s School of Nursing in Joliet, IL. This was a very large hospital run diploma program at the time and is no longer around. The nuns ran the program. She lived in the hospital dorms and worked 5 days a week at the hospital. They had a curfew of 9pm and the nuns measured their skirt length prior to going onto the unit every morning at 6:30am. They could smoke in the hospital and take their patients outside for a smoke break “fresh air”. By her senior year, she was running the entire unit leading younger student nurses. This was very routine for the time. She was responsible for sharpening the needles, folding the laundry, and sterilizing the equipment, including the bedpans. She graduated in 1960. She went on to receive her BSN.
My first nursing pin was received just before graduation at MacMurray College in Jacksonville, Illinois forty years ago this year. This program and College are sadly no longer. At the time, this program was a newer BSN program and I felt honored to be chosen for the third graduating class. We worked together to make sure everyone was successful. Everyone went to the library. We were lucky to have electric typewriters to complete our papers. Many students had manual typewriters. We had the very best nursing Dean, faculty, and clinical nursing faculty/staff. To say our class was tight is an understatement. This formative experience shaped my life and the person I am today. It was the very first step to an adventurous life, amazing relationships, and a fulfilling career. I’m forever grateful for the opportunity to be a part of the MacMurray College nursing program. It was a traditional program with starched white uniforms, white hose, and white polished nursing shoes. We wore our white caps with a Scottish tartan cloth stripe and our navy blue polyester aprons with our MacMurray patch on the front to signify we were students. I remember getting my cap caught in the curtains and IV tubing in the ICUs. At that time, nursing students were able to do almost everything. Seasoned nurses encouraged us to grow and supported our efforts. I can remember my first patients and my first witnessed birth. It was a life changing opportunity. Thank you!
I received my graduate nursing MSN degree from Lewis University after working for 21 years. It was a hybrid program and we had a great experience. I loved the program and work for Lewis University in the graduate program now.
Submitted by Jeannine Haberman
Here is a picture of my pin from Loyola University Chicago Marcella Neihoff School of Nursing.
I graduated with my BSN in 1994.
I returned to Loyola in 2021 as part time faculty in the Simulation lab.
Loyola is a special place and formed me into the nurse I am today. I loved it so much I went back 30 years later to teach 🙂
Submitted by Joanne Whiteside
Below is the photo from my daughter Grace Reynolds pinning at graduation in May 2024 from St. John’s college of Nursing. She was pinned by her grandmother Virginia Long , a 1968 graduate and myself a 1997 graduate all of St John’s college and previously school of nursing . This May we will collectively have 86 years of nursing service, wearing the pin is a legacy.
Melanie Reynolds RN MSN FNP-BC
This is my pin from Marquette University where I received my BSN in 1981.
Submitted by Dorothy Kane
I am sending a picture of my Grandmother’s nursing school pin, dated 1920, now 105 years old.
This pin has always been significant to me, first, because my grandmother being a nurse helped inspire me to go into nursing, though she really did not encourage me to do so. Her description of nursing in the twenties and thirties was quite different from today’s picture of nursing; and, when I was a young girl, stated she did not think I should be exposed to all those indecencies such as wearing black hose and shoes, menial caregiving tasks, and housekeeping duties required in hospitals those years. But I could not be deterred. My grandmother died with cancer when I was 13 years old.
Second, this pin is significant because of its connection to the history of nursing education in the State of Illinois. It is engraved with the school she attended: “Training School For Nurses State of Illinois, Department of Public Welfare, Anna State Hospital.” It has the Seal for the State of Illinois on it as well as a cross, indicating healthcare.
The first class graduated from this school in 1883. In 1926, the school merged “into a school of collegiate rank in the University of Chicago,”* the last class graduated in 1929 and the assets of the Anna Training School were turned over to the University of Chicago in 1930. The cited website below is a rich history of the Training School at Anna State Hospital.
On the back of the pin is her name and the date for that time: “Lulu Crawshaw, 1920” and in very small print I cannot make out, the name of the company that made the pin. The history of the school lists the graduates for every year, except for the years 1920 through 1922, and there is no reason given for that omission.
I plan to donate this pin to the Union County History Museum in Cobden Illinois in hopes this history can be preserved.
Thank you for the opportunity to share my story.
Margaret Miller, RN, MSN, Retired (St. Luke’s Hospital School of Nursing, St. Louis, 1958; SIUE, 1972 & 1986)
I earned my BSN from the University of Michigan in 1965. That degree launched me into a successful 63 year nursing career that included achieving an MSN in Community Health Nursing from Wayne State University 14 years later. My career included jobs in public health, migrant farm worker health, community health centers management and management care insurance.
Submitted by Jane Miller
This pin represents access – opportunity – cost-effectiveness.
Back in 1964, when I graduated from high school, there was no money for college because we were a poor country farm family. My dad thought I should follow in my mother’s footsteps and work in the local glove factory. When I discovered I could go an hour away on Interstate 70 to Terre Haute for three years and become an RN, I jumped at the chance. But first, I worked as a secretary for a year and was paid $127.00/month. My parents let me live at home and I saved it all. Those savings covered the school’s $1,200 tuition,. books, room and board. The diploma program was a good one, and I easily passed the State Board exam.. Later on, that same knowledge informed my ability to pass the NLN mobility exams, and that paved the way to my BSN from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville in 1986. I was working in a hospital when CCU was born here, and at a community college when internet education was born there. I went on to attain a PhD in Education in 2002. Now that I am retired from paid work, I am a historical researcher and writer in the areas of local health care and women’s history. My school of nursing pin symbolizes the deep roots of my professional life.
Linda Ruholl, RN, PhD
Enclosed are two nursing pins that were awarded to me as I continued my education and career in nursing.
The first one shaped as the Star of David was received from the Michael Reese Hospital School of Nursing Diploma Program in 1977. There is historical significance to this program. It operated from 1890 to 1981. The Jewish community of Chicago founded the hospital and the attached nursing school to primarily to serve Jewish Chicagoans. It is documented in 1946, that the nursing program was listed among the few nursing schools in Illinois that did not discriminate based on race in their admission process.
I enrolled in this program and was accept not because I was academically unprepared for a university nursing program. What led me to choose this program was cost- the inability to obtain grants and loans to finance my education and training. At that time period, loans, grants, awards were not freely available to minorities.
The second pin was received from Loyola University Chicago’s Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing Program in 1985. I earned my BSN on the year of the nursing school’s 50th Anniversary. The graduating class was gifted a pin guard that can be attached to the nursing pin. Being a Jesuit University, we were given the honor of having our hands blessed by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin during our pinning ceremony.
Would like to thank you and your readers for allowing me to share my academic journey through a photo of my nursing pins.
Sincerely,
Denise Pang Hong MS BSN RN NE-BC
My sister’s mother-in-law, Ella, was a nurse at the hospital where I was admitted to have a hysterectomy to be done the next day. I was 25 years old at the time of my hysterectomy. Of course, I was terrified and upset at my inability to have any more children, mainly the choice being taken away from me, and also the changes in my body this would make. It was the evening before surgery and in those times, you had to come in the night before to be prepped. I was crying uncontrollably when Ella came in. She sat beside me comforting and soothing me. What truer demonstration of a nurse’s heart than this act! She demonstrated empathy, listening skills, and talked me through my concerns. She held my hand and wiped my tears as I calmed. I realize now, as a nurse myself, that she probably had a million other things she needed to be doing in that moment! Her calmness and support made me relax, rest, and face the coming day. Because of my experience with Ella, I later became a nurse myself. She impacted my life as many nurses impact the life of their patients. Nurses are unsung heroes that change the life of their patents every day in many ways.
Ella followed my progress, first as a CNA, then a student nurse, and finally as an R.N. BSN. Whenever I saw her at family functions, she would ask about my career and give good advice. When she passed, my brother-in-law, Matt, gave me her pin and cap. I treasure these items because when I look at them it reminds me of the reasons why I became a nurse!
Ella’s pin is the one with a lamp and 51 years on it! The oblong one is my BSN pin.
Thank you!
Kandie Halleran RN BSN
Nursing Pin Story-Nancy J. Brent, MS, JD, RN
The photo submitted is my nursing pin from Villa Maria College, Division of Nursing, in Erie, Pa. The four-year Baccalaureate program was the first in Pennsylvania and was highly rated. The late Dr. Dorothy Novello, Ph.D., founded the program.
I was fortunate to be admitted to the program and the curriculum was a sound foundation for obtaining my Master’s degree in Psychiatric/Mental Health Nursing and my Juris Doctor degree from Loyola University Chicago School of Law.
