BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — A Kern County organization made up of nurses is growing its ranks and its mission — honoring fellow nurses and serving veterans across the community.
The Kern County Nurses Honor Guard has 73 members, with 3 more potential members in the process of joining, according to Karen Coughenour, a registered nurse and co-founder and vice chairperson of the group.
"There are just that many nurses who want to participate and volunteer," Coughenour said.
The group's top priority is providing what is called a Nightingale Tribute to nurses at the end of their lives.
"The nurse honor guard, our number one priority is to be able to be present to provide what's called a nightingale tribute to every nurse," Coughenour said.
"At the end of their life journey, when they pass or at funerals and celebrations of life, we do living tributes to nurses who are at the end of their life if we're requested and we have that honor to do," Coughenour said.
When multiple events are scheduled, and a tribute request comes in, the tribute takes precedence.
"If a service came up, a request came up, and that was the time that they want their nurse to be honored, we will pull from our ranks and say please we need you for that and it never fails, they show up," Coughenour said.
About 30% of the group's members are actively working nurses, while the remaining 70% are retired nurses who continue to volunteer.
"When you retire, you don't wanna retire your nursing, your passions — you don't wanna retire that, so they look for things to do," Coughenour said.
The group coordinates events through an app called Band, where members RSVP to activities. Coughenour said she serves as the primary point of contact and handles much of the group's outreach.
The Honor Guard has a strong connection to veterans, regularly participating in events that recognize their service.
"What we know about the military, the veterans, is that during their time of service they aren't recognized the way that we would be and think that we should be, that they should be, so when they become veterans it's extremely important to keep that camaraderie between us," Coughenour said.
"Many nurses served during war times; they still do, and many veterans appreciate the nurses and the service that they provided," Coughenour said.
For Memorial Day weekend, the group is planting flags at Union Cemetery on Friday to mark veterans' graves. On Monday morning, members will return to Union Cemetery for a dignitary presentation, where they will be seated in VIP seating so the public can see them in their red, white, and blue uniforms.
"We don't advertise — that's our best advertisement, is to see us, to know what we do, to share our mission," Coughenour said.
The group is also planning to visit a local fire station on Sept. 11th, with as many nurses as possible in uniform, to honor the nurses who died during the 9/11 attacks.
The Honor Guard has a board of directors that includes a chairperson, vice chairperson, chief tribute officer, and chief historical officer. Coughenour said the organization is focused on building a legacy and a succession plan for the future.
The group spent 2023 building its organizational foundation, and 2024 focused on recruiting members. At their very first membership meeting, held at Cal State, three of the five founding board members were called away to pay tribute to a nurse who had served for 30 years at Memorial Hospital — before the meeting even began.
"All of these nurses, when I said the man's name, they all knew him," Coughenour said.
The new members who attended that meeting joined the three board members in honoring him.
"We did a tribute to him with our nurse with the brand new members, so it was very meaningful," Coughenour said.
Nurses or families of nurses who would like to request a Nightingale Tribute, or anyone interested in joining the Honor Guard, can contact Coughenour at 661-747-3873. The group can also be reached by email at KCNHG2023@gmail.com or through their website at KCNHG2023.org.
This story was reported on air by a journalist and has been converted for this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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