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Giving Strength to Those Who Need It
From helping substance abusers to assisting aging veterans in their final years, nurse Gauvin provides a soothing presence
When she was 29 years old, her kids pretty much raised, Martha Gauvin decided to go back to school to study nursing.
"I thought I wanted to work in geriatrics," Martha recalls. "I loved working with older people. But then a friend of mine,
who was working with substance abusers, urged me to join her. I remember she told me, 'Martha, you'd be wonderful at this.'"
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Gauvin comforts Richard Werth, one of the patients who nominated her.
Photo by: Michael Manning
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A Soldier's Nurse
Martha Gauvin
Veterans Hospice Homestead
Martha Gauvin has been our practicing nurse at Veterans Hospice Homestead since it
opened in 1997. On a daily basis, she showers each of us with a warming smile and a wealth of knowledge.
She cares for terminally ill, homeless veterans. Everyday, each of us looks to her for
support, answers and a laugh. She demonstrates her skills as a nurse, counselor and friend in a fashion that
is above and beyond what anyone might expect. Those in need of compassion and support can look to Martha for the
highest care and assistance, which comes from the bottom of her heart. She is an incredible, selfless nurse and we are blessed to have her.
-Nominated by the residents at Veterans Hospice Homestead: Walter Sokol, Richard Werth, Richard Bailey
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And so she was. A licensed practical nurse, Martha found she had a talent for helping people who'd taken a wrong turn in
life. After earning a certificate in the treatment of chemical dependency, Martha took a job as a counselor and finally became
clinical director of the substance abuse program at Naumkeag Hospital in Ashburnham, before the facility closed.
She found the job extraordinarily gratifying. "People lose so much when they pick up a drink or a drug," she explains.
"But they gain so much in recovery. I loved helping them find out about their strengths, helping them discover their gifts and talents."
That's why, Martha says, she loves nursing. It's a profession that allows you to meet with people during their most vulnerable moments in life. "People look to nurses
to provide the most basic physical, emotional and spiritual needs at a time when, due to illness, they cannot find that strength within themselves," she explains.
A Family Tradition
Nursing also runs in Martha's family. Both her mother and daughter are nurses. As a child, Martha remembers going with her mother
to see a bedridden patient and bringing along a sheepskin to place under the patient's back. It was that gesture of caring that has
stayed with Martha, a gesture that was reciprocated when Martha's own mother was in a car accident and hospitalized for three months.
"Many of the nurses and doctors who took care of her donated their time," Martha recalls. "And I think it was their example of community,
of going beyond the call of duty, that attracted me to this work."
The next step in Martha's career began with a family tragedy. When her 44-yearold brother-in-law was diagnosed with incurable
cancer, Martha helped nurse him through his final days. "I realized that I could be around families in the presence of death--I could help people through that process."
A Nursing First
Shortly after, in 1997, Martha was asked to help launch the nation's first hospice for homeless veterans, the Veterans Hospice Homestead
in Fitchburg. "My Dad was a World War II vet in the Army Air Corps," she explains, "so I've always had a deep respect for the men who
answered the call to serve." Since many of the homeless vets she encounters are struggling with substance abuse issues, she's been able to
bring all her skills to bear at the hospice, as well as at the Hero and Armistice homesteads in Leominster, two other veteran's shelters where she works.
"There's a lot of living to do in dying," says Martha, "and in the hospice there is something special that happens when we all pull together
to help a person come to the end of his life."
Some of the veterans have family who can attend to them during their final days. Bur for others, says Martha, "we are their family."
It was the residents of Veterans Hospice Homestead who nominated Martha Gauvin for this award, and she is deeply grateful for that recognition.
"I can think of no honor greater than being with these men," she says, "and helping them leave this world with dignity."
2003 Profiles:
Mimi Bartholomay | Ying Sun
A Salute to Nurses 2003 |
The Caring Profession |
How You Can Become a Nurse |
2003 Featured Nominations
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