You stumble to the student center, nurse pass in hand. You reach the nurse’s office, and are greeted by the friendly face of our school nurse: Meredith Lizmi. For the past 3 years, Nurse Lizmi has made our school a healthier place for all. But, who was she before she was our nurse?

Nurse Lizmi has gotten several different degrees in nursing at the Wheaton and Northeastern colleges in Massachusetts, and at the University of Maryland. “I enjoyed helping people and I really like science and medicine.” Lizmi said. She helped many people, and has had many incredible opportunities in her career, which include working in a cancer center, organ transplant patients, and serving in the army.  

Nurse Lizmi served in the U.S. army, in the Army Reserves as a medic, ROTC (Reserve Officers Training Corps) cadet and as a registered nurse. In the army for 11 years, six of which were active time in Washington D.C. Nurse Lizmi says that serving has made her “A more confident person” and gave her more “opportunities to try new things and meet many unique people.” While in the army, she helped people who were recovering from various surgeries, such as liver and kidney transplants, urological, gynecological, and eye surgeries.     

When she wasn’t serving in the army, and before coming to here, Nurse Lizmi worked in a cancer center, helping mostly breast cancer patients who were working through the difficulties of cancer and helping them figure out their cancer and treatment plan. Although there were many different people, with many different types of cancer. She helped with chemotherapy, giving blood products, and caring for patients in the middle of treatment.

When Nurse Lizmi isn’t here, she enjoys reading books, watching cooking shows on TV, and spending time with her family. “I like to do what my kids do, which is a lot of cooking and and crafts. My eight-year old daughter wants to be a chef when she grows up.” She has a husband, a daughter, and and a son, whose ages are eight and ten. They go on family bike rides and hikes, and they love going to the beach to collect shells. “We have a lot of shells,” she said.

“She [Nurse Lizmi] has affected Canyon Vista by being very patient and working with the students really well.” Rachitha Shivakumar (7) said.

Nurse Lizmi has helped our school and our country so much. Our campus is a healthier, happier place because of her and without her, school would not be the same.