Some students from Indiana Academy have learned firsthand the value of helping others, thanks to a unique Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) program sponsored by Adventist Midwest Health.

Through the program, students can earn money for tuition and gain valuable experience in the medical field by taking a special course and working as a CNA, earning as much as $12.50 an hour. The result? Some participating students are able to pay nearly all of their school bill at Indiana Academy.

John Rapp, regional vice president, Ministries and Mission at Adventist Midwest Health, recently spoke at the graduation ceremony for about 30 students who completed the CNA training. (Some were not present for the ceremony because they were working as a CNA that evening.)

"Seeing the energy and commitment these students have to extending the healing ministry of Jesus Christ was inspiring," Rapp said. "Our mission revolves around compassion and healing, and this program fits perfectly by promoting wellness within the community."

For many students, the motivation to enter the program begins as purely financial. That quickly turns into another blessing—keeping a tender heart as they help elderly patients with basic health needs.

Student Toni Crumley, a junior, said she was in no hurry to join the program, but something inside her told her to sign up. "I didn't think that I was cut out for that kind of work," she said. "Now I work in a nursing home, caring for elderly people who depend on me to take care of their most basic needs, such as eating, bathing, toileting and dressing."

Not only can she pay a large part of her school bill, but she's learned valuable life lessons, such as time management, perseverance and how to work with people of all ages, Crumley said.

"Most importantly, I have a huge opportunity to show the love of Jesus to the residents, some of whom are lonely, depressed, in pain or confused," she said. "I know I am doing God's work by bringing hope and peace to their lives. 'The King will reply, "I tell you the truth, whatever you did to one of the least of these, my brothers and sisters, you did it to Me"'" (see Matthew 25:40).

Student Nathan Kelly, a junior, said patients can recognize the difference in their caregivers. He tells the story of helping a man who came to the nursing home every day to see his elderly wife.

"One day he asked me, 'Are you from Indiana Academy, and are you an Adventist?'" Kelly said. "I replied, 'Yes' to both questions, and he said he could tell I was an Adventist CNA. 'I can always tell the Adventist CNAs apart, because they're the ones that care.'"

Making those connections with patients trumps any financial gain, said student Justin Thurber, a junior. "I realized what a wonderful witnessing opportunity this could be," he said. "That fueled my desire even greater to become a CNA. Without the support of Adventist Midwest Health, we probably wouldn't have been able to take the course otherwise."

Gary Thurber, Justin's father and Indiana Conference president, said as a parent, it's a thrill to see your son or daughter involved in the program.

"It gives them a level of education about the world they live in they could never receive in books alone," he said. "Every patient they help provides them with an opportunity to show compassion and care at a level most have never experienced before. It mirrors closely so much of what our Savior did during His ministry here on earth."

Julie L. Busch, regional manager, public relations, Adventist Midwest Health