Feature

by Amanda Paxton with Benjamin Tertin

Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index
Previous Features | Send mail to The Voice

MBC Says Goodbye to
Beloved Nurse

To preserve the memory of Ellen Swope, MBC has named the
campus wellness center after her. --Ann Staatz, photo

Serving as nurse during Multnomah's Wildhorse Canyon Retreat, Ellen Swope suffered a massive brain hemorrhage on Sept. 9.

A life-flight helicopter transported her to St. Charles Hospital in Bend, Ore., where she remained in intensive care. That week, doctors sedated Mrs. Swope, stabilized her condition and conducted an MRI scan that later proved inconclusive in determining the cause of internal brain bleeding.

Students and faculty received daily updates regarding her condition via e-mail and a custom Web page at CarePage.com. On Sept. 20, Multnomah received word that Mrs. Swope had died.

Mrs. Swope's husband, Steve; sons, Colin and Ian; and remaining loved ones said goodbye during a celebration of life service held Sept. 29 at Central Bible Church.

Mrs. Swope had served as Multnomah's nurse and as an on-campus mom since August 2002. We deeply miss her, and we love her.

Multnomah students, staff and faculty talked to The Voice and offered their thoughts and memories about Nurse Ellen:

"Nurse Ellen was a mom for any-body who needed one. She always had a smile. I'm sure the rest of the campus is going to miss her sorely; it's going to be a tough year."
        --Will Aldrich, junior, history

"She was so patient with all the students' needs, and she had compassion for everybody. Even though she probably got complaints all the time, she was just always there for them."
        --Nicole Christianson, sophomore, elementary education

"She was so sweet and easygoing, but at the same time, she was a perceptive lady. She knew the fakers, but she was still compassionate and merciful."
        --Tess Yates, junior, youth ministry

"I owe Nurse Ellen 50 cents. She gave me medicine for a cold. I didn't have the money on me. I forgot to pay her back--and that was last year."
        --Brendon Robar, junior, pastoral ministries

"I remember seeing her at church and at Olive Garden, and she was excited to see us and talk to us and see how our day was going and, you know, love us."
        --Lisa Hezmalhalch, junior, journalism

"Nurse Ellen and her husband had a couple burglaries, they had to move, and she lost her dog. But even though that was painful, she embraced life, and she was a real example of somebody who lived beyond her years."
        --Kelly Bryant, MBC recruitment

"Nurse Ellen was a real servant; that's just the way it is."
        --Paul Pastor, junior, educational ministries

"She followed up when you were sick, came to see how you were doing. If I could sum her up in one word it would be 'selfless.'"
        --Jennifer Parnum, junior, music ministry

"Last year I was sick about four times, and she was always looking out for me and getting me back to class."
        --Trent Jackson, alumnus

"Nurse Ellen was special to me. When I had cancer my freshman year, she served me with the heart and hands of Jesus. During my stem cell transplant in 2005, she spent a couple nights with me reading the Bible, praying with me, rubbing my back and my feet, and ministering to me spiritually and physically. We became friends. I'm praying for the Swope family, and I'm excited all the more to go to heaven, just to see her."
        --Cheree Jones, sophomore, educational ministries

"She was always helping people, always there for students. She was very giving, and she's going to be greatly missed."
        --Cassie Lynn Wagner, junior, educational ministries

"She was excited about her new office, and she wanted Sally to paint her a mural. Just the fact that she went to Wildhorse with us with her mom being so sick. How many people would do that?"
        --Kimberly Drechsel, sophomore, history

"She took our blood pressure and our temperature. She wanted to make sure we were all right, and if we weren't, she sent us to the doctor. She'll be missed; she really will."
        --Linda Taylor, student employment

"Ellen Swope was a godly woman who always was turning people to the Lord. She had a bright smile and words of encouragement, and she loved her grandbaby."
        --Penny Rader, recruitment department

"I saw how much she loved the students and loved the Lord. I miss Ellen."
        --Kerkula Pehlke, senior, pastoral ministries

"The last thing she said to me was that she felt like we were all her kids and that she enjoyed every year when we all came home back to school."
        --Eric Faris, sophomore, elementary education

"You got the sense that what really comforted and encouraged her was to come on campus with the people she enjoyed and loved."
        --Wayne Strickland, academic dean

"She was probably my wife's best friend. Many people dearly love Ellen. She was not just a staff member; she was a friend."
        --Dave Jongeward, assistant academic dean

Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index
Previous Features | Send mail to The Voice