[MUSIC PLAYING]
I really just want to be there for people,
and I don't really care what capacity it is.
To be that help, that's why I got into nursing.
There's not a lot of men in nursing.
There's just not a great representation.
The goal that I've always seen with the Men Advancing Nursing,
or MAN club, for short, is to put ourselves out there
as men in nursing, to break down barriers.
To our younger people, like the people in high school,
they just automatically assume if they're a guy,
they can't be a nurse.
I think those gender norms kind of hurt
what they want to do with their life.
Men and women can both be nurses,
men and women can both be doctors,
and that's totally normal.
I wanted to get more experiences outside of the classroom,
outside of the clinical setting.
And I found that through the Western Albemarle Rescue Squad.
And that has, honestly, been one of the coolest opportunities
that I've had to advance my education, to be a better care
provider for the citizens of Crozet and Albemarle County,
and it's changed my life in every single way.
I was never really comfortable with,
like, my image of masculinity coming into nursing school.
Through my experiences, I kind of
realized that masculinity, to me,
is all about being compassionate, and being
kind, and being vulnerable.
And as a nurse, I think one of the biggest responsibilities
is just to make patients feel comfortable
and to feel loved by showing your kindness
and your vulnerability.
That's something that I've held really close
and I know that I will always hold close to me.