Good morning. My name is Jeannie Mollohan and I am administrative director of nursing operations at Cardinal Glennon Children's Medical Center in St. Louis.

I want to talk about a courageous leader with whom I have had the privilege of working: Sr. Noreen McGowan. Sr. Noreen is truly the mother of pediatric nursing at Glennon. Her life has revolved around Glennon since it opened in 1956. Sr. Noreen was the first nursing director at the medical center and for most of her career she taught nursing at Saint Louis University and worked as a nurse at Glennon during the weekends and academic breaks.

Sr. Noreen retired in 1986 and began volunteering as the family liaison in the surgery waiting room. Today, at the age of 92, she continues in this position and she amazes and inspires me daily.

Soon after I moved into my current position, I stopped by the surgery waiting room to room to say hello. Sr. Noreen asked me "just what are you doing now and which department are you in?" I told her that I had moved to Nursing Administration and she quickly replied, "You really need to be up there with the babies and their families and training those new nurses!" I told her that it was her fault that by her example I had learned that no matter what position I was in whether it be in education, management, clinical or in a volunteer position, I have the opportunity to impact patients, families and my coworkers.

During hospital orientation, Sr. Noreen meets with the new employees to discuss our mission and values, and she shares with them her contributions to Cardinal Glennon. I review the comments from the evaluations monthly and they consistently include comments such as "Sr. Noreen is a very inspiring role model," or "Sr. Noreen is the history of Glennon," or "How proud Glennon must be to have an expert clinical/spiritual advocate."

Sr. Noreen was a pioneer in pediatric nursing and ahead of her time, recognizing that children were not just little adults. She helped to change visiting hours for families when Glennon opened its doors - not popular concepts at that time. . . but she stood up for what she thought was right for patients and families. Sr. Noreen has kept the history of Glennon alive through her stories. I can't tell you how many times I have heard the story of how exciting it was to move into a hospital with piped in oxygen and suction and what a wonder the first open heart surgery was. Things we all take for granted now.

I recently realized why she continues to share those stories with me. As a leader, it will be my responsibility, along with my colleagues, to carry on our heritage, our mission, of doing what is best for patients and families through the sharing of Sr. Noreen's stories . . . and by adding all of the firsts I have experienced throughout my years at Glennon. I hope I make her proud.