When the Final Shift Comes, Nurses Stand Together
When the Final Shift Comes, Nurses Stand Together
By Gail Parsons
At a quiet funeral service in coastal Georgia, a small group of nurses in crisp white uniforms stands in solemn formation. One lights a lamp, its glow symbolizing a life spent in service. A bell rings three times, and moments later, the light is gently extinguished. The lamp is handed to the family—one final gesture of respect from nurses to one of their own.
This is the work of the Coastal Georgia First Nurse Honor Guard, a volunteer group dedicated to honoring nurses in life and death.
"Our main goal for everything we do is to honor nurses," said Michele Roberts, co-founder and vice president of the chapter. "That's the heart of everything we do."
A Growing Movement
The Honor Guard officially launched on August 23, 2024, serving Chatham, Bryan, and Liberty Counties, though they've extended beyond those borders when needed. The Coastal Georgia Honor Guard is part of a growing state and national movement gaining momentum as nurses across the country unite to recognize their peers in deeply meaningful ways.
The National Nurses Honor Guard began in 2003 through the Kansas State Nurses Association. Since then, local Honor Guards have grown to more than 250 chapters nationwide. Georgia alone has doubled its chapters over the past year, from seven to fourteen.
Michele and co-founder JJ Riley were moved to form the local chapter after seeing online videos of similar tributes.
"They have similar tributes for police and military," JJ said. "But there was nothing like this for nurses, until now."
The Nightingale Tribute
The group offers a five-minute ceremonial service performed at a nurse's funeral or memorial, called a Nightingale Tribute to honor Florence Nightingale, founder of modern nursing.
The ceremony symbolically releases the nurse from earthly duties and celebrates their career. A Nightingale lamp is lit to honor the nurse's life of service, then extinguished to signify rest. The lamp becomes a lasting keepsake for the family. A white rose, representing compassion and purity, is placed near the casket or urn, with additional roses given to loved ones.
While ceremonies bring closure to grieving families, they also affirm the dignity of the nursing profession itself.
"We've had so many people tell us they've witnessed other Honor Guard tributes but never seen one as touching and personal as ours," JJ said.
For loved ones, the ceremony serves as a powerful reminder that they're not alone—that others understand the sacrifices, challenges, and deep commitment that come with a life in nursing.
"I was a single mom for most of my nursing career," JJ explained. "The families really appreciate what we do, because they went through all this with the nurse. Mom or dad couldn't be at volleyball games, couldn't be at PTA meetings, couldn't see you in the choir. When you had a special moment at school, they couldn't be there. Anniversaries, Christmas—we're all at work."
The ceremony helps validate those missed moments, reminding families that those absences weren't in vain. Their nurse was making a meaningful sacrifice, dedicating time and energy to care for others in times of need.
Beyond Funerals
Only licensed nurses—RNs, LPNs, and APRNs in good standing—are eligible for the tribute, ensuring the ceremony maintains its integrity. But the Honor Guard's work extends beyond funerals.
"We're trying to focus more on honoring nurses while they're still living, as well as providing services at their passing," Michele said.
The group now performs tributes for retirements and special occasions. One memorable event was a 95th birthday celebration for a retired nurse.
What makes the Honor Guard unique is its ability to unite nurses across all specialties and settings.
"Each specialty has their own professional practice group," Michele said. "This is one of the only things in nursing that brings all nurses together. All that territorial stuff has gone away—we're all just nurses, honoring nurses."
Everything the group does is 100% volunteer. No one gets paid. No family is ever billed. Members donate their time, uniforms, candles, and roses simply because they believe nurses deserve to be remembered with reverence.
A Calling Honored
JJ recalls walking into a service alongside a nurse's family, seeing and feeling the emotion.
"The gratitude, the tears, the sense of pride—they're so thankful someone took the time to recognize what their loved one did for others."
Both Michele and JJ discovered their calling early. Michele heard hers before she was old enough to realize it was a calling.
"My mom said that even when I was four or five years old, when people would ask what I was going to do, I always said I was going to be a nurse," she said. "I've always liked taking care of people and helping people and making a difference in people's lives."
For JJ, inspiration came from watching her mother prepare for night shifts.
"I would see her put on that white uniform," she said. "Back then, it was very strict. She had to wear a white uniform, pantyhose, and white shoes. She put that cap on before she left the house. It was an honor to put that cap on."
Although the cap is no longer required, when she dons it for a ceremony, she takes her place alongside generations of nurses who preceded her.
After earning her associate degree in nursing, JJ returned to school for her bachelor's—both degrees funded by the hospital in exchange for a work commitment she more than fulfilled.
"I like to say I've paid that debt several times over," she said with a smile.
Her career began in oncology, caring for cancer patients, but the emotional toll quickly wore on her.
"I would see patients when they were diagnosed. I would give them their chemo. And then I'd see them again when they died," she said. "It just felt like it never got better."
Seeking change, she transferred to the emergency room, a fast-paced environment that was the complete opposite. She stayed there about 25 years.
Full Circle
Michele and JJ said being a member of the Honor Guard is a privilege and an honor.
"It's not just meaningful for the families—it's meaningful for the nurses, too," Michele said. "We went to an alumni meeting for the Candler School of Nursing and met nurses who have been nurses since the early 1940s and 1950s. Just hearing their stories—I can't even describe what it means to hear all these stories and see how far nursing has come."
As part of the honor guard, Michele and her colleagues wear traditional white uniforms and capes reminiscent of the World War era—navy blue on the outside and red on the inside, a design once meant to help nurses be seen in wartime settings.
"We even wear the traditional nursing cap," she added. "Especially after COVID, when so much in nursing changed, I think this just brings everything full circle."
When asked why she has stayed in the field for nearly four decades, Michele didn't hesitate.
"Because I love it," she said simply. "I love my patients. I love hearing their stories. I love being involved in their care and seeing them recover. Watching someone come in very sick and leave healthy again—it's incredibly rewarding. I can't imagine doing anything else."
In a world where nursing often feels thankless, the Coastal Georgia First Nurse Honor Guard instills a sense of honor, legacy, and community.
"Nursing is a calling," Michele said. "And this is our way of answering that call—one final time."
