'She was my example'

Andrews of Summerside RN Tracy Perrin says grandmother inspired her to go become a nurse

Some people choose a profession because of the money, others a personal passion For Tracy Perrin senior care was the family business

Tracy, who has been an RN for 27 years, started working in the field when she was 11 Her first job was sweeping floors for $2 50 an hour in her parent’s community care home in Long Pond, N L The work wasn’t glamorous, but she was eager to be part of the action

“I think I was just naturally born a nurse, ” she said. “I was really interested.”

She quickly moved from sweeping floors to helping with baths and other care duties By 15 she was learning to do ostomy care

That might not sound like typical teenage behaviour, but in the Perrin house it fit

By then, the early 1980s, the Perrin’s had been in the care business for close to 40 years Many family members had sought careers in care, all following in the footsteps of the family matriarch

Ethel Perrin

“She is my world,” said Tracy “She was my example ”

The Early Years

Ethel was born in 1905 in Paradise, N.L. Her father died in a sealing vessel accident in 1914 forcing her to move in with her grandparents. They were strict, typical of that generation, but they were also loving and kind Most importantly, they instilled in Ethel a work ethic that would carry her through many challenges in her life

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