See Also:
Beginning of a FAMOUS Hero: The Clara Barton Story.
Life Lesson #98 – Be Valuable, Not Important.
On May 12th, 1820, Mr. and Mrs. Nightingale were in Florence, Italy when their baby daughter came into this world. So they named her Florence after the city where she was born!
Young Florence Nightingale grew up, however, in London, England. As a child, she studied several languages, including Greek, Latin, German, French, and Italian. Mr. Nightingale taught her math, too, while her governess taught her music and art.
Everyone thought that Florence would grow up to be an upper class proper lady and spend her life entertaining high society folk in London. But Florence had other ideas. She wanted to HELP sick and disabled people get well and have better lives. So she began studying nursing. Her family, and those who knew her could not understand why she would do that, because at that time, nurses were not respected very much, and hospitals were usually dirty, and poorly equipped.
Florence spent a lot of time HELPING those who were sick and hurt, but more and more she was shocked to see how hospitals were operated and how nurses were treated. She was determined to see all that change. Hospitals should be clean, very clean she thought, and nurses should be well trained and treated as professionals.
Well, over the years, Florence Nightingale did begin to see things change, and it was her determination that got it all started. Today, she is known as the founder of modern nursing, and she certainly was a HERO.
– Jim Lord