The rules of the giveaway were to "point, click and win."
That’s exactly what Amy Bailey, a student nurse at Virginia Western
Community College in Roanoke, Virginia, did to win the 2002 Hyundai Elantra car
giveaway sponsored by NurseZone and Hyundai Motor America.
Bailey, who said that several friends are already lining up to take a spin in
her new car, is planning to drive her pewter-colored car to Myrtle Beach, South
Carolina, where she and three friends will celebrate their graduation from
nursing school in a few weeks.
"My friends are saying, ‘Yeah, we get to go in a new car," she
said.
The phone call that will never be forgotten by Bailey came just one day after
the National Student Nurses’ Association 50th anniversary
convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where student nurses, including
Bailey, had their last chance to enter the car giveaway.
Bailey was talking to her mother on the phone when she noted on her caller ID
that a call on the other line was coming from California. Bailey joked with her
mother about the possibility the caller would be awarding her a prize.
Her mother jokingly responded, "Whatever. Don’t believe it. Keep
dreaming."
But it wasn’t a dream afterall—Bailey won the car.
"When I hung up with NurseZone I was screaming," said
Bailey, who found herself in shock and without words when she received the news.
"I’m very excited. I can’t believe it," she said. "I’ve
never won anything like that. It was a big shock."
Bailey, who is still undecided about the nursing specialty she wants to
pursue—admitting that there’s a lot of options to choose from in nursing—will
continue working at Lewis-Gale Medical Center where she works as a student nurse
part-time on the orthopedic, neurology and pediatric floor.
Bailey said that she has always had a desire to become a nurse. In high
school she volunteered for a rescue squad and thought she would use those skills
to become an EMT. Instead, she followed her dreams to become a nurse.
"[Nursing] is hard work but it’s very rewarding," she said.
"You may not always see it but you’re going to come across some wonderful
patients. And in the end, there’s always that one [patient] who brings you
around and says ‘thank you.’ "
Though Bailey may not know where her nursing career will take her next, she
knows she’ll definitely be putting miles on her new car.
Congratulations!