JACKSON HOLE, WYO – For many, fate whispers. For others, a louder voice might be needed. For Brenda McIntyre, fate crashed her car—using not one, but two accidents to send the message: You will be a nurse.
McIntyre is enrolled in the Central Wyoming College nursing program. She is a year away from completing her nursing degree.
McIntyre was in a car accident in 2014 that left her with a shattered knee, a compound fracture in her leg, and a broken arm and elbow. She spent six months in a wheelchair and arm cast. After a lengthy recovery period, a vocational rehabilitation counselor asked McIntyre if she had given any thought about going back to school.
“While I was in the hospital in Casper some of the nurses who took care of me there and at Elkhorn Rehabilitation inspired me and some of them even went to CWC, so I wanted to be like them,” McIntyre said. “When I got my acceptance letter to the nursing school I bombarded Stacey Stanek in the cafeteria I was so excited.”
“I didn’t know Brenda then, but it was apparent to me that she was excited and very motivated to learn,” Stanek said, who is the assistant director of nursing. “I have since had the opportunity to observe Brenda in action and I have come to admire her tenacity and depth of character. She is meant to be a nurse.”
With no previous college experience, McIntyre had to start from the beginning with a full year of prerequisites. Being away from academics for about 15 years meant a lot of hard work to get back into study mode. But McIntyre kept at it and credits the staff and faculty at CWC for helping her through tough times.
“The people here have been so amazing,” McIntyre said. “If you need help, you just need to ask. There is always someone to help you here. They just won’t let you fail.”
Still, McIntyre had periods of doubt. Then came another crash. It was an April snowstorm. McIntyre was on her way to Casper when she came upon an accident. She knew she had to stop. That was her there just a few years ago, McIntyre th0ught, and besides, she was a nurse in training now.
“It was an adrenaline rush for sure. I thought, what was I going to do? I knew how she was feeling because I had been in her shoes before,” McIntyre said. “I just took her pulse and made sure she wasn’t going into shock and that her injuries weren’t severe. I hope she is still doing ok and that I helped her.”
Being able to help an individual in a roadside accident was just one more sign that she should continue on her path to become a nurse.
“I want to be someone my kids can be proud of,” the student-mom said.
McIntyre plans to stay in Fremont County and work in trauma and maybe in the Intensive Care Unit. She currently works in dialysis in Ft. Washakie at Wind River Dialysis.
