Meet the 2021 WSNF scholarship recipients

Amber Doffing received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from the University of Washington (UW) and has been a registered nurse for over nine years. She works as an OR nurse at PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham — where she serves on the staffing committee and on the Magnet committee. She is a graduate student in the Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) program at Gonzaga University. Amber is passionate about providing safe, high-quality care while being nonjudgmental and compassionate. With her FNP, she would like to work in women’s health. She expects to graduate in 2024.

Bridgette Gardea graduated from Ramona High School in Ramona, California. She is currently an undergraduate nursing student at Seattle University where she is working towards a bachelor’s degree in nursing. Bridgette has been volunteering and helping others since she was 8 years old. For the past several years, she has been a volunteer at a children’s summer camp on a horse ranch — helping children learn new skills like tending to horses and practicing self care. She expects to graduate in 2022.

Sarah Meyers received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from Pacific Lutheran University. Since then, she has been working in the emergency department at St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma — where she is passionate about providing individualized care to all her patients. Her experiences in the ED have piqued her interest in furthering her education. Sarah is now enrolled in the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program at UW studying to become an adult-gerontology acute care nurse practitioner. She expects to graduate in 2023. She hopes to use her new knowledge and skills to serve others as a hospital intensivist and then as a trauma nurse practitioner.

Shavonne Reynolds received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from UW. Since then, she has been working in the burn unit at Harborview Medical Center — where she is active on the Unit Practice Council, as well as the Magnet committee. Shavonne’s work on the Unit Practice Council has shown her how improving processes can result in improvements for both patients and staff. This led her to pursue graduate studies at UW, where she is now enrolled in the DNP program. Her area of concentration is the Family Nurse Practitioner program, and she expects to graduate in 2023. The WSNF Board of Trustees selected Shavonne to receive an American Nurses Foundation scholarship because of her work to create an informational video to orient newly admitted burn patients to her unit. She was also named as the Judy Huntington Scholar.

Nicole Wooldridge earned a bachelor’s degree in theology and international peace studies from the University of Notre Dame, which she used to pursue a career in the nonprofit sector — working in the U.S. and developing countries including Uganda, Ecuador and Honduras. Recently, she and her family lived and volunteered in rural Honduras for a year, often at a children’s home and medical clinic. While there, she worked as a certified EMT under the direction of the clinic nursing staff. She also secured a grant to install a solar power system at the clinic to create a reliable power source. Nicole is currently pursuing an entry level master’s degree in nursing at Pacific Lutheran University and expects to graduate in 2023. Because of her work in Honduras, the Board selected her to receive an American Nurses Foundation scholarship. She was also named the Deo Little Scholar.