You Are the Safest Adult in the Entire Building
You are only one person, yet you are mother, father, counselor, detective, and superhero to two thousand little (and not-so-little) humans every single day.
You treat stomach aches that are really “my parents are fighting,” headaches that are really “I’m being bullied on the bus,” and scraped knees that need far more than a Band-Aid; they need someone to believe their tears are real.
You are the only adult many children will ever tell about the bruise they “fell” on, the only one who notices a seventh-grader has lost twenty pounds, the only one who sees that the quiet kindergartener flinches when adults yell at home.
You keep EpiPens, inhalers, seizure meds, insulin, and an endless supply of crackers in your tiny office that smells like peppermint and safety.
You teach fifth-grade girls about periods with honesty and zero embarrassment. You teach boys that it’s okay to cry. You teach everyone that mental health days are real days.
You spot eating disorders before guidance counselors do, suicidal thoughts before parents want to believe them, and signs of abuse before anyone else dares to look.
You hand out ice packs and hugs in equal measure. You call CPS with shaking hands and then go back to putting cartoon bandages on a six-year-old’s finger.
You are the keeper of secrets, the dispenser of hope, and the person every child runs to when the world feels too big.
You do it with a budget of pennies, outdated equipment, and no extra pay for staying late to hold a crying eighth-grader who just wants to die.
And still, when a child walks out of your office, they stand taller. They breathe deeper. They believe, for the rest of the day, that at least one grown-up sees them and cares.
School nurse, you do not just treat boo-boos. You protect childhood itself, one quiet, brave, loving moment at a time.
You are the reason some kids make it to tomorrow.
There is no louder silence than the one after a child whispers “thank you” and means “you saved me.”
You hear that silence every day.
We see you. We honor you. We thank God for you.
With the deepest respect and a thousand healed hearts, Wendy Stone RN, PsyD Doctoral-trained psychotherapist, International CE educator.
Forever grateful to every school nurse who kept children safe when no one else noticed they weren’t.