Nursing People Through Their Final Moments
Being there in the final moments of someone’s life confirms Kanda’s decision for her education and career. Though no one in her family is a nurse, Kanda Jackson found her purpose after she decided to apply for the East Central University Nursing School through the Southeastern Oklahoma State University campus. She and her brother Kannon, a Durant fireman, were the first college graduates on her mother’s side.
“I’ve always been very driven academically,” Kanda says. “I’m grateful to be a stepping stone for the family, for future generations to pursue higher education.”
Graduating in May 2017 with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing, she went to work in in the Progressive Care Unit at Alliance Health Durant.
“I had a bit of a struggle going into the work field,” Kanda says. “I wanted to work at the new Choctaw clinic in Durant.”
Though the timing was off for applying to work there, Kanda knows there will be opportunities in the future. For now, she believes she is where she needs to be, learning the essence of nursing and being with patients in their last moments of life.
“Everything happens for a reason,” Kanda says. “Being in critical care is unlike any experience I would have received at the new clinic had I originally gone there. I see people in some of their darkest hours.”
Kanda was awarded the Juanita Wilmouth Scholarship in 2015. This scholarship is the result of donations given to the Chahta Foundation in memory of Juanita Wilmouth, the mother of Gregory E. Pyle, Chief of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma from 1997 to 2014. Coming from a strong family background in the Choctaw Nation, this award was sentimental for Kanda.
“My mom worked side by side with Chief Pyle for years, and it meant a lot,” she says.
Her mother, Kay Jackson, serves as senior director of cultural services, which helped form Kanda’s identity in being Choctaw. For eight years, Kanda worked side by side with her mother during summer youth camps, teaching cultural classes for beadwork, pottery, dance, stickball, and more. She ran for and was chosen as Junior Miss Choctaw Nation 2008-2009 and Miss Choctaw Nation District 10 for 2014-2015.
Growing up, her classmates didn’t always understand fair-skinned Kanda and her passion for Choctaw history and culture, but that didn’t matter to her.
“Going through high school, I would have heritage days for my class and put on little programs,” she says with a laugh. “In fourth grade, I had my mom come to one of my classes to make fry bread and traditional foods for everyone. I’ve always worn my regalia to school functions.”
Kanda’s identity is firm in who she is, who her people are, and what her purpose is. That confidence has extended to her career in nursing.
“If God can shine a light through me when patients need it so badly, I feel that’s a job well done,” Kanda says. “I’ve gained a second identity as a nurse, but being Choctaw has meant everything to me. Sharing my culture, being a proud Choctaw member — that’s what I’ve always identified with.”
Credit: Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer
