It is with great pride and admiration that we are here today to celebrate Valerie Muilenburg. She is an excellent nurse and has dedicated 37 years to Pine Rest. She began her career here on October 5th, 1985, in the long-term adolescent units. I can only imagine the amazing change and growth that she has seen in our organization throughout her years here. Her dedication to the development of nursing care at Pine Rest has been so appreciated through her work in the nursing supervisor’s office in HRS as well as through quality improvement processes on the ORS Retreat Residential units.

She has always been a strong advocate for the safety of patients and her peers – she isn’t afraid to speak up.

Peers describe Valerie as a strong colleague, and a wonderful example of patient care, she is thoughtful, caring, and supportive. Valerie has trained many newly hired nurses at Pine Rest, including myself. She always helps them feel important and welcome to the team. Val is reassuring and supportive, not only to patients who are struggling but also to her coworkers. She takes extra time to give small tokens of appreciation to others, showing them that she cares.

Val, we know the amount of effort you have put into your work as a nurse here and we want you to know that your dedication to Pine Rest and the patients we serve is both inspirational and motivational. On behalf of all Pine Rest team members who have walked alongside you at one point or another throughout your career here, we thank you for your service and mentorship and are so honored to have worked with you all these years.