Featured photo: Nursing students pose in front of the Health Sciences Center in Hendersonville. Photo by Rich Keen.
Marketing & Communications Dept.
HENDERSONVILLE, N.C. – On Wednesday, May 6, graduates of Blue Ridge Community College’s M.E. Oliphant School of Nursing gathered on the Henderson County Campus to celebrate their accomplishments at the school’s 38th Annual Nurse Pinning Ceremony.
In her opening remarks, Director of Nursing Dr. Amy Szoka said the ceremony is a time-honored tradition which represents the completion of instruction and induction into the profession.
“This ceremony is more than a tradition—it is a rite of passage that connects generations of nurses. The nursing pin our graduates receive is not only a symbol of achievement, but a reminder of the trust, responsibility, and humanity at the heart of nursing,” Szoka said.
This year, 39 Blue Ridge graduates were pinned as part of this rite of passage. The graduates will also be honored during the College’s May 9 commencement ceremony.
Dr. Laura B. Leatherwood, president of Blue Ridge Community College, reflected on the impact of nurses in her graduation remarks.
“Nursing is both a science and an art. It demands great skill and knowledge, but also empathy and intuition,” Leatherwood said. “Throughout your career, you’ll be called on to see and treat not just the condition, but the whole person. That is the work you are now prepared to do.”
Leatherwood also noted the support and encouragement of the Young family, whose generosity in memory of Renee Young will impact patients and the nursing community for years to come. In late 2023, Mr. Paul Young donated $1 million to support Blue Ridge’s work to educate tomorrow’s nurses. The Nurse Pinning Ceremony was held in her memory.
Graduate speaker Casondra Hopper shared words of encouragement to her fellow graduates before the traditional blessing of the hands, pinning of the graduates, and lighting of the candles. The ceremony concluded with the graduates’ reading of the Nurse’s Pledge.
This spring, Blue Ridge Community College is accepting applications through May 19 for the Fall 2026 nursing class. More information about the program is available online at www.blueridge.edu/nursing.
The following graduates received pins at the pinning ceremony:
Tiffany Aldridge
Leslie Avila Ramirez*
Phillip Babcock
Morgan (Grace) Ballew
Katherine Beaty*
Kristan Brown
Sela Capps
Jennifer Cornett
Ashley Cussans
Elizabeth Daly
Cynthia DeViva
Jonathan Doyle
Addison Fox
Carissa Fuentes
Amber Hill
Casondra Hopper*
Ava Howard
Kayli Johnson
Courtney Lance
Josie Lively*
Ana Martinez Aguilar
Haley Meade
Natalie McCollin*
Vanessa Padilla-Hernandez
Liza Pan
Mary Parachini
Ashley Peacock
John Prettyman
Marisol Ramirez-Munoz*
Jennifer Revis
Brooklyn Salser
Anna (Sky) Sikkink
Bailee Stepp
Katherine Teran
Melinda Thompson
Katherine Vigil-Flores*
Allison Whitmire*
Johanna Williams
Kayla Williams
*Indicates enrollment in the WNC Regionally Increasing Baccalaureate Nurses Program (RIBN)
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