Ferrell Hospital celebrates life of longtime nurse
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Staff of Ferrell Hospital, along with friends and family of the late Barb Bouseman, came together Friday afternoon to celebrate the life of a longtime Ferrell Hospital nurse by dedicating a bench and tree in her honor.
Bouseman was a 30-year employee of the hospital who passed away shortly after retiring. She was remembered by many Friday as being a compassionate, kindhearted and gentle person.
"Barb was a fantastic nurse," said Ferrell Hospital President and C.E.O. Tom Barry during Friday's dedication. "She was a very special person."
Because she loved to garden and work with her flowers, the hospital staff collected money to plant a tree in Bouseman's honor. They also decided to purchase a park bench to put in front of the hospital so others could enjoy the outdoors.
"Barb was such a sweet, compassionate person," said Director of Nursing Lisa Anderson, who spearheaded the campaign to dedicate a bench in Bouseman's honor. "She always had a giggle."
Bouseman's son, Paul, also spoke at the dedication.
"For my mom, nursing was more than a career," he said. "It makes us so proud to think of the thousands of people she served right here."
Anderson said the hospital staff issued letters to current and past nurses asking them to participate in the campaign to honor Bouseman and another long-time Ferrell Hospital nurse, Barb Rogers.
The staff is planning to donate to Ferrell Hospital's capital campaign in honor of the two women.
"Barb was so important to our family here at Ferrell," Anderson said. "We wanted to do something in her honor."
Though every attempt has been made to contact current and former nursing employees, anyone who would like to donate and has not been contacted should call the nursing office at Ferrell Hospital.