Sarah Hemminger was one of the first ambassadors in the Side-Out Ambassador Program, earning both a scholarship and a Side-Out/AVCA National Dig Pink^® Award in 2011. In the essay she submitted, she shared that her Dig Pink^® event encouraged her to become a nurse. Five years have passed and she is now a nurse! Below is an essay she wrote recently for the Side-Out blog, a reflection on the process that led her to where she is today.

“The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others”
~Mahatma Gandhi

I feel this quote perfectly describes my development to becoming a nurse. I have always felt a desire to help others even before I knew I wanted to become a nurse. Whether it was volunteering at my local military support group, being a mentor at a summer camp or organizing our Dig Pink^® event, I have found comfort and inspiration from helping others.

After an emergency hospitalization opened my eyes to a career as a nurse I knew I had found the perfect job for me. It was a career where I could incorporate my love for helping others and make a difference in the lives of my patients. During college as I began to develop my skills as a nurse, my drive to help others continued to grow. In my junior year of college, that desire took me to Ireland where I volunteered at a placement for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

Looking Back

As I look back over my years in both high school and college, my drive to help others gave me the opportunity to have many amazing experiences. Through all of these experiences I was able to grow into the person I am today. After graduating from Carlow University last May, I began my career working as a registered nurse at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Every day I am thankful I chose nursing as my career. I am fortunate to have such a rewarding job that makes all the long hours worth it.

In a career where my whole day is focused on the service of others during my career, I cannot help but feel that my interactions with the people I care for have given me more in return. I have developed into a strong and independent woman from my career as a nurse. I am around people in their times of need have and that has helped me find out more about myself then I could have ever imagined. Now I am coming up on my first year of being a nurse, and I am so amazed to see how much I have grown from one year ago. I believe if you want to get to know yourself better, all you need to do is a selfless act for another person. After that, you will find out things about yourself that you never knew before.

Sarah Hemminger RN, BSN

About The Side-Out Foundation

The Side-Out Foundation founder of Dig Pink®, teams with the volleyball community to inspire science and hope in the match against breast cancer. Side-Out is the only charity using the power and teamwork of the volleyball community to beat cancer and is directly responsible for extending the lives of stage 4 breast cancer patients For more information on news, blogs, and events relating to the organization, subscribe to Side-Out’s newsletter. For any additional information, please contact The Side-Out Foundation online.