ALBANY, Ga. – A woman in the area is going against the odds by becoming a qualified nurse at the age of 69.
Loretta Mack says that becoming a trained nurse has been her dream her whole life, and she wasn’t going to let her age stop her.
It looked like everyone was waiting for Loretta to finish school. Mack said, “I did it.”
She became a registered nurse after being a certified nurse’s aid for six years. It was the support of a resource nurse that pushed her to do so.
“I told myself, ‘That would be a great example.'” Mack said, “I’ve always wanted to be a nurse or care for people because I love them.”
Heather Jackson, a flight nurse, extended her contract to be Loretta’s preceptor nurse because she liked her and thought she was fun.
“She’s going to do what needs to be done.” Loretta will clean you, feed you, and take care of you. She will also sit down and talk to you. Jackson said, “Loretta doesn’t just walk into your room and blow through it.”
Loretta says it wasn’t easy to become a qualified nurse, but she’s glad she didn’t have to do it by herself.
The note is from my sister to my grandson Julian and from my grandson Ramondo. Everyone helped me. Mack said, “Even some of the doctors sat down with me and did homework, practice tests and other things.”
Loretta has one lesson she wants to share to encourage other people.
“Getting older is not a big deal.” It’s just a number; I don’t know who came up with that. I believe that anyone can do anything they set their mind to. Mack told her, “You can do it if you really want to.”
