NURSE SPOTLIGHT
June Lamb RN
June’s Story
In becoming a nurse, numbers and statistics are essential in helping treat a patient’s pain or discomfort as they heal. June Lamb’s experience as a nurse has become a shared experience with her patients, a spiritual journey through the trials and tribulations of life. This perspective is not learned, but attained through her own experiences.
Path into Nursing
After graduating from high school, June Lamb went directly into nursing. She became a CNA at University Hospital in the Labor and Delivery Unit working with high risk patients, where she stayed for 25 years before going to nursing school in 2010. There was something about supporting the families during such a significant time in their lives; whether it was nursing the babies back to health or being with families through troubling times, she had an innate sense of how to be there for them, rising above the bare essentials of her nursing duties. And that was it – simply being there with the families during the most critical moments of their lives was how she supported these families. Her own experiences with loss informed her abilities to provide this kind of unspoken support.
June was the caregiver for both of her Grandmothers toward the end of their lives. She cared for and comforted them through their passing, a defining experience that would allow her to provide the kind of support her patients and their families needed while working with high risk patients.
As a nurse in oncology, families leaned on her for support and guidance through crucial moments. Of course, her own experiences with cancer informed her ability to navigate these families through such difficult times.
“I would say, ‘I’m here for you if you need me.’ Then they would call me, and I would just stay with them. I found that to be rewarding.”
For June, it’s an honor to be present during notable occasions in someone’s life. When she came to work for PASCO, these momentous occasions shifted into landmark moments during a client’s life.
She was then gratified by improving the lives of clients and their caregivers. Sometimes it’s going into the home to find the answer to their question, sometimes it’s just being there to listen. Either way, both provide a sense of purpose for June.
“My day is better if I make their day better.”
And she does. June spoke of one client, a young boy experiencing Down Syndrome. Every time she arrives at his house, he excitedly waits by the door. While otherwise being nonverbal, he exclaims “yes!” when she invites him to sit with her at the table. He would always sit across the table from her, until one day he sat next to her and held her hand. It was a landmark event in his development. These moments, which may seem so small to many people, are huge to June and to the families she sees. She’s seen clients go from crawling on the floor to walking, against all odds.
June cherishes these moments. She grateful that as a home health nurse, she gets to see these families on a regular basis, and over the course of their lives; she has the privilege of attending their birthday parties, milestones, and being invited into their home.
When June is not being the foundational support system for her families, she volunteers with Mending Faces, where she travels to the Philippines and El Salvador to lend her talents by providing a brighter future to those whose lives are burdened by cleft lip, cleft palate, and other deformities.
“I do this as I do for the families in Colorado, to help others who are in need. My problems are nothing compared to what others are going through. If I can help one child eat better, gain weight, or be taken away from the ridicule of a facial deformity, I will help, and this makes my soul whole. It is about giving and caring enough to take time to help others.”
Thank you, June, for always being there.
