From setback to success: Nursing student achieves her dream
When graduating senior Shelby Blythe walked across the stage Friday at Pittsburg State University to be pinned as a new nurse during the Nursing Pinning Ceremony, the person doing the pinning was her daughter, Hadlie, age 6.
The moment was special for Blythe: as a young mother, she overcame challenges to earn a degree she once thought impossible.
The moment also was special for two individuals in the audience who helped make earning that degree possible: brothers Sam Reda (BBA ‘64) and Jack Reda (BBA ‘72).
As sons of first-generation graduate Sam Reda Sr. (‘33), they started the Reda Educational Foundation two years ago to help students facing barriers to college.
Blythe is their first Pitt State Reda Scholar to graduate.
“This scholarship meant the difference to me finishing school,” she said.
Blythe started at Pitt State in 2017 but stopped after just a few semesters when she became pregnant with Hadlie. In 2021, she returned to complete her pre-requisites and when her daughter was four, she was accepted to the Irene Ransom Bradley School of Nursing.
Now 26, she has accepted a job as a registered nurse in the cardiology unit at Freeman Health System in Joplin.
“I’ve always known I wanted to give back, even at a young age,” she said. “Ever since I was young, I knew I wanted to be a nurse — so much so that my parents have old photos of me around 3-4 years old with a stethoscope. It’s something I’ve always known I wanted to do!”
Blythe said she was grateful not just for the financial opportunity the Reda Educational Foundation provided, but for their continued encouragement and care, as well.
More than anything, she’s glad she set her sights on finishing her degree.
“It’s been so challenging and hectic at times due to my personal life and how challenging the load of nursing school is, but it’s truly been the most rewarding and amazing experience,” she said.
“It’s given me the opportunity to love my job and help others, all while giving my family a better life. Pitt has been one of the best parts of my life the past few years and I am so happy I made the decision to attend.”
Six other nursing students — all juniors — are Reda Foundation Scholars following right behind Blythe. The scholarships broke down barriers they each faced so they could finish their degrees.
The Nursing Pinning Ceremony
The Nursing Pinning Ceremony is held each May at the Bicknell Family Center for the Arts, just before Commencement ceremonies.
This year, 82 pre-licensure students, 37 RN to BSN students, six MSN students, and 10 DNP students from the Irene Ransom Bradley School of Nursing were pinned.
A Nursing Pinning Ceremony occurs at the end of a student’s program in a school of nursing and signifies the completion of this level of education and official initiation into the profession. The ceremony is modeled after a ceremony in the 1860s in which Florence Nightingale was awarded the Red Cross of St. George in recognition for her service during the Crimean War.