Heroism comes in many forms.  There’s the brave firefighter who risks his life to save those trapped in a burning building… The fearless police officer who captures the evil criminal… The wealthy philanthropist who donates money to feed the poor… The doctor who discovers a cure for the sick…

But, there are less dramatic acts of heroism that occur regularly in which one did not save the world or win a gold medal, but the impact is just as great.

There are many people in our community that require skilled nursing care during their most vulnerable moments. The need may be a fertility injection on a Friday night, a chemo infusion at home on Tisha b’av, a feeding tube unclogged during a blizzard or even helping a hospice patient in the final days. There’s the hero that goes out on Shabbos to give that injection at the required time, the hero that selflessly gives a young father his chemo treatment despite their own personal circumstances, the hero that braves the weather and unclogs an elderly man’s feeding tube thereby preventing a complex emergency room visit, and the hero that professionally and compassionately cares for a frum young mother shortly before her petirah. After the fact, these heroes are not honored at dinners, there are no plaques commemorating their altruism, in fact, there is nary a word of recognition!

These incredible heroes that provide such vital chessed are often nurses from the Lakewood community. The nurses have access to these opportunities of Chessed and so much more through Nurses Network of Lakewood. By being a participant in the Nurses Network, nurses can become involved in volunteer opportunities, job opportunities and educational opportunities.

Nurses Network of Lakewood (NNL) is a domestic non-profit corporation in Lakewood, NJ, founded in 2009 with the purpose of promoting networking amongst nurses in the community. The objectives include job placement, career support and social events. NNL Inc also provides many services to our community such as volunteering, referrals, teaching and training. Our nurses’ specialties include hospital nursing, home care, school nursing, advance practice nursing, obstetrics and many more. With an ever growing database, which currently numbers over two hundred local nurses, the networking results have been remarkable. Over the past year, Nurses Network has connected more than fifty appropriate candidates to their current employment. They have serviced countless individuals in the volunteer capacity ranging from fertility injections, wound care, hospice, infusion assistance, diabetic care and more. Networking has also allowed nurses access to information regarding continuing education options including CEUs, RN to BSN and graduate nursing programs.

For many nurses, the key feature of Nurses Network’s services is the Annual Event. At this social gathering, nurses get to interact on a personal level with many others in the same profession.

The featured promotional items and literature at the events provide exposure to job opportunity information in an appealing, informative manner. The program includes a hot buffet donated by the event sponsors, a keynote speaker, roundtable introductions, and many other interactive activities.

Another program feature for the Nurses Network event is the “Nurse of the Year” nomination. While all nurses are heroes due to the nature of their job, this nurse has been selected for going above and beyond.

The theme of this year’s upcoming melava malka event taking place on January 20th, is “Unsung heroes”. Nurses in Lakewood selflessly provide all kinds of services to our community’s most vulnerable, with the sole objective of easing someone’s pain and helping them when they need it most. The upcoming event will recognize just a touch of what real chessed is all about, as the well-known speaker will attest to based on his firsthand experience. All in attendance will receive a boost of chizuk as their heroism will inspire others to emulate their selflessness.

With an expected participation of over one hundred nurses, this monumental event will bring many gains to the nurses, health care companies, and ultimately to the Lakewood community.

Nurses Network of Lakewood would like to take this opportunity to thank the event sponsors; Bayada Pediatrics, Star Pediatrics, Chemed Health Center, Centers Plan for Healthy Living, Towne Nursing, Tender Touch and Chana Ganzweig CPR. Nurses Network would also like to thank Bikur Cholim of Lakewood and Chesed of Lakewood for working together to assist the community in times of need.

All the services Nurses Network of Lakewood provides to its nurses as well as the vendors assisted, is done by nurses, for nurses, free of charge.

The event is open to all frum female licensed RNs.

For more information and for sponsorship opportunities, please email [email protected]