Written by Victoria Stopp, vstopp@pensacolastate.edu

Pensacola State College’s Licensed Practical Nursing program made history during the .  Three sisters were among the honorees on June 11, and each sister represented a unique and inspiring story of her own.

Julia Bell, Diana Hultberg, and Linda Heaviland truly embody the American dream. Hard work and dedication have brought them a lifetime of evolving successes. As of June 24, the sisters can add “nurse” to their list of achievements.

Making history wasn’t easy, but the Chumuckla-based sisters thrive on an atypically high work ethic. As newly graduated licensed practical nurses, they already have plans for furthering their education and careers. The sisters are all on the honor roll at PSC, and pending two more class grades, Diana will have maintained a 4.0 in LPN coursework. All three say they plan to earn the Registered Nurse degree from Pensacola State, and Diana is starting the program this fall.

Each of their lives are fascinating stories. Linda is an Army veteran and worked as a civilian in Iraq from 2005-2011. When she returned to the United States, she promptly enrolled in school.

“I’ve always wanted to be a nurse,” Linda said. “I never was in one place long enough to get into it. Now I have time in my life to do this, and I took the opportunity to do it. I want to feel like I’m helping people.”

Julia, who has three grown children, one of whom is a Pensacola State LPN graduate, worked on the administrative side of healthcare for years, and looks forward to now working on the clinical side with her sisters.

“We have a lot to contribute,” Julia said. “Life and job experience is a plus for us going out in the field. We want to be a positive influence on our community. We wouldn’t be where we are today if we didn’t have a positive attitude.”

Diana was initially the one who began talking about nursing. She started nursing classes 23 years ago, but family obligations prevented her from finishing. Now, she said, “for the family, it was important to set the example of continuing education and learning.”

While they each have unique reasons for becoming nurses, they all express a deeply held desire to be lifelong learners and to help others.

“We want to set an example and give back to our community,” Diana said.

Julia, the eldest sister, has now completed a long-held dream.

“There’re things you want to do in life, and sometimes you don’t get to do them,” she said. “Forty years later, I’m finishing school. Education and learning are for a lifetime.”

The sisters have enjoyed success representing PSC in the competitive environments of student organizations SkillsUSA and HOSA. In late June, Julia traveled to Nashville to compete in Medical Spelling for HOSA nationals. That same time, Diana competed in Practical Nursing for Skills nationals, and Linda was at Skills nationals for First Aid and CPR competitions in Kansas City. All three enjoyed competitive success, with Julia earning the number 3 spot in the nation, Linda placing 9th in the nation, and Diana bringing home 6th place in the nation.

Humility and thankfulness are a central part of the sisters’ positive outlooks. Despite their numerous accomplishments, they are quick to credit others with helping advance their success, and to express gratefulness to everyone who touched their lives along their journey to becoming nurses. Their list of credit includes God, family, friends, fellow students, Pensacola State, WIA, HPOG, and Catholic charities.

The sisters nodded in agreement as Julia summed up their recent experiences:

“This has been a fantastic year to remember.”