Published on September 9, 2015 by Katie Stripling  

Ida V. Moffett School of Nursing will honor 11 alumni at its annual Courage to Care Gala Friday, October 9. The honorees, including Living Legacy Award recipient Brandon Brock, were selected for their adherence to the maxims of the school's namesake, the late Ida V. Moffett.

The awards will be presented at an elegant gala on Friday, October 9 at 7 p.m. at B&A Warehouse in Birmingham, Ala. Guests are invited to join the school for this special celebration. Tickets are $75 each and must be purchased in advance. Tables and sponsorships are also available. Space is limited and reservations are due by September 30. 

The 2015 honorees highlight the many opportunities nurses have to make an impact on patients, families and the world around them. Each nurse’s path is different, but the honorees are united by their commitment to providing the highest quality of patient care and leadership within the profession. They all hold degrees from the School of Nursing or its forerunner, Birmingham Baptist Hospital.

In 2012, in celebration of its 90th anniversary, the school established the Living Legacy Award to highlight a graduate whose local touch has a global reach through leadership and service to others.

Brock, serves as a staff clinician at numerous facilities in Dallas, Texas and as chief executive officer for Brock and Brock Enterprises, an education venture in functional medicine and neurology that offers continuing education courses and certification. He is cited as a highly regarded clinician, educator, motivational speaker and researcher.  

2015 Courage to Care honorees are:

Jennifer Dardy Addington, D.N.P., M.S.N., FNP, chair of the Night/Weekend Nursing Track at Jefferson State Community College

Cynthia Fayet, RN, charge nurse in Labor and Delivery at Princeton Baptist Medical Center

Shannon S. Moody, M.S.N., CRNP, nurse practitioner in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Children’s of Alabama

Nita Morrissette, M.N.A., CRNA, senior nurse anesthetist and clinical coordinator, Children’s of Alabama

Madonna Merkling Nichols, M.S.N., RN, administrative director of Women’s and Infant’s Services, St. Vincent’s Birmingham

Jennifer Overton, M.S.N., CRNA, nurse anesthetist, Anesthesiologists Associated

Angela Sanders, D.N.P., AGPCNPBC, inpatient hospitalist nurse practitioner, Baptist Medical Group, Navarre, Fla.   

Rachel Shaneyfelt, M.S.N., CRNP, family nurse practitioner, UAB Moody Clinic

Letisha Shields, B.S.N., RN, nurse manager, Medical Intensive Care Unit at Princeton Baptist Medical Center

Eric K. Tondera, D.C., M.S.N., FNP-BC, owner and operator, Tondera Family Practice and Chiropractic, Houston, Texas

Alumna and retired faculty member Barbara Money serves as the 2015 Gala Chairperson.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 6,101 students from 45 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.