Marquis Who's Who Millennium Magazine

163 A Marquis Who's Who Magazine E lla Dean Gordon’s desire to become a nurse was inspired by her father, who, after losing an eye in World War II, obtained a job as a nursing assistant in a veterans hospital in Alabama. He fell in love with nursing as a career and encouraged his daughter to pursue it for herself. She received a Bachelor of Science in nursing and a Master of Science in health education. While employed as a clinical nurse instructor at Jacksonville State University, she had the opportunity to develop a health education program for two public health clinics in Etowah County, Gadsden, Ala. Later she was hired as a consultant to write annual reports for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This utilization of her master’s degree in health education was a highlight of her military and civilian nursing careers. Throughout her 38 years of military and civilian nursing, Ms. Gordon held many staff and charge nurse positions in Georgia, Alabama, Texas and Panama. Toward the end of her career at Brooke Army Medical Center, she was a nurse educator in the health promotion clinic for five years and head nurse in the allergy and immunization clinic for 18 months. She retired from civil service at Brooke Army Medical Center with 25 years of service and from the U.S. Army Reserve with 22 years of service at the rank of colonel. Ms. Gordon has not only used her skills as a nurse to help those in need, but also imparted her knowledge as an educator for the Cardiovascular Council of Savannah, a consultant in health education for Etowah County clinics, and a clinical nursing instructor at Jacksonville State University from 1984 to 1985. She utilized her nursing expertise as an American Red Cross instructor and chairman of Red Cross volunteers from 1985 to 1986 at Fort McClellan, Ala. During her career, Ms. Gordon contributed articles to professional journals and was included in “Outstanding Young Women of America” twice. She was active as a member of the Army Nurse Corps Association and the Orthopedic Nurses Association. Ella Dean Gordon Women's Health Nurse (Retired) Brooke Army Medical Center Fort Sam Houston, TX