Melissa reporting from Vietnam!

Hello everyone

Thank you all for your continued support of the TJ Myrick Scholarship Fund! Your support for us does not go unnoticed and is so appreciated!

For those of you who don’t know me already, I am Melissa. I am the first recipient of the TJ Myrick scholarship. I graduated from the Regis University Class of 2016. My passion to be a nurse started when I was in the 8 th grade. However, my parents said I always showed a desire to care for others. When I told them I wanted to be a nurse, they did everything they could to support me in my dream. I have also always had a passion for serving those who have served our country. My dad is a Vietnam veteran who suffers from PTSD and have long line of service on both sides of my family. My goal has always been to combine my passions.

Since receiving the TJ Myrick fund in my senior year of nursing school, I have been able to start a successful career in nursing with my most recent years specializing in Burn ICU and Care Coordination. A year after graduation, my now husband and I moved to Lubbock, Texas for his career and I continued to find opportunities to grow in nursing.

In 2018, I had the amazing opportunity to return to school for my Master’s degree in Nursing while continuing work and planning our wedding. My husband and I married in Oct of 2018 and I graduated in Dec of 2019 with dual MSN in Leadership and Education. My special passion of working with veteran has continued as I have volunteered to work with local vets and worked on a support program for local women veterans in my MSN program. While 2020 and 2021 brought many challenges for everyone, during moments of reflection I realized that my passion for serving veterans extended into my passion to serve. I decided to begin work with a local recruiter who helped me apply for a position as an ICU RN in the Army reserves. I received my CCRN (Critical Care Nurse) Certification in 2021 and in January of 2023, I was commissioned as a Captain in the Army. In the future, I hope to be a good nurse leader to my fellow servicemen and women, as well as find new ways to support veterans and get more involved with PTSD support programs.

In our free time, my husband and I continue to enjoy skiing, camping, and hiking along with our two new rescue pups Millie and Remi. I also love getting to travel, most recently on a trip to Ireland with my husband and to Vietnam with my parents.

None of this would have possible with the continued love and support of Pam and Steve Myrick. I am forever grateful to be the first TJ Myrick Memorial Scholarship recipient but more than that, I am eternally grateful for the friendship I was able to develop with Pam and Steve. They have truly been a pillar in me being able to achieving my goals and have never stopped cheering me on! I am so glad to have been able to keep in touch with them after over the years. I truly hope to continue to ‘pay it forward’ and make everyone proud!

Thank you all again for supporting the TJ Myrick Scholarship Fund!​

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