Give Grace

by Vickie Jenkins, Staff Writer

Epworth Villa…where their purpose is enhancing lives so people thrive. Their mission centers on providing a perfect balance for each individual as a whole person.
This is where you will find the best of nurses, helping the residents in whatever they need. It is also where you will find, Noelene Morton, Director of Nursing, a very cheerful individual, wearing many hats with her numerous responsibilities throughout the day. “I love working here at Epworth Villa,” she said.
Noelene’s father was in the Military so she grew moving and moving and moving again. “I grew up in all of the states except for two,” she commented. “I’ve lived here in Oklahoma City, OK for 30 years. When I graduated from high school, I went right into nursing school at OU. I’ve been a nurse for 28 years and have been here at Epworth Villa for almost 3 years.”
Asking Noelene what qualities make a good nurse, she said, “A nurse has to have compassion, able to work as a team, a lot of passion and definitely flexibility. We never know what the day will bring.”
One of Noelene’s favorite things about her job is when she gets to go out onto the floor and work with the nurses and aides, taking care of the residents. “It brings joy to my heart as I see the hard work and teamwork that the nurses are doing,” she said with a smile.
The biggest challenge that Noelene has is the fact that she always wants to understand the staff as well as the residents. “I want to make sure that I understand what’s going on with the nurses and I can communicate with the staff as well as the residents and we can all work together.”
What advice would you give to someone going into the medical field? “I would tell that man or woman to be prepared to put your heart into everything. Yes, there will be some hard days, but it is all worth it at the end of the day,” Noelene replied.
Noelene considers herself as a leader and a follower. “I never wanted to be the boss but as I get older, I know that I can step up and be a leader when I want to be. I don’t mind being a follower either; I just don’t like to stand alone. Teamwork is important to me. I am happy doing both,” Noelene commented.
Noelene is married to a wonderful husband and has 4 daughters; 27, 22, 19 and 17. “Yes, we have a lot of drama around the house,” she said. “None of them followed in my footsteps to be a nurse but they all have very caring jobs,” she said. “I guess they got that part from me.” Noelene has one precious granddaughter and one grandson on the way.
Noelene’s hobbies include crocheting, playing the piano and baking. “My daughter can always tell if I am stressed,” she said. “I’m baking something in the oven and playing the piano. You know, I think she’s right!”
Describing her personality, Noelene says she is bubbly, cheerful, energetic, and adventurous and likes trying new things all the time. When she was a little girl, she wanted to grow up and be just like Quincy, Medical Examiner; A TV show about Quincy, a forensic pathologist. “Oh well, I think I was better suited to be a nurse,” she said with a laugh. Ending with an incident of Noelene’s early years…I was a new nurse at an assisted living facility. An older lady came in, entering each room, searching for one of our residents…her husband. She just knew that her husband was in the room with another woman! The charge nurse was trying to stop the woman from opening up the door to the resident’s rooms, trying to explain what was going on. The nurse had entered the room where the woman’s husband was. As the angry wife entered, she thought the charge nurse was her husband’s mistress. The wife picked up a pitcher of water and poured it on the nurse’s head. Surprisingly, the nurse didn’t get mad and said, sometimes, you just have to roll with it! The nurse didn’t get mad at all. (Perhaps, the charge nurse was flattered at the thought of the wife being jealous of her!) Hmm.
Noelene has a few words that she lives by every day; at home and at work: ‘Give Grace.’