A ‘partner’ for life in Island Park

On a recent afternoon at Francis X. Hegarty Elementary School in Island Park, school nurse Barbara Gould is busy — a student has come into her office with a broken tooth.

“Yesterday it was a broken arm — when the weather gets nice, things usually tend to happen,” Gould said.

Scrapes, stomach aches, and yes, even broken bones, Gould has seen it all since she began her career in the district in 1981. Gould said she can see anywhere from 30 to 80 kids a day and yet, she said, nothing surprises her.

That's because Gould was an emergency room nurse for 13 years before coming to Island Park, where she often worked 24-hour shifts in fast-paced environments at South Nassau Communities Hospital and St. Francis Hospital in Roslyn.

“We basically have a healthy population here — a broken arm here and broken leg there,” she said. “But coming from an ER background, I was used to seeing people hit by trains. Nothing surprises me.”

In fact, Gould said she never planned to stay that long at Hegarty.

“I never planned to stay this long,” she said. “But I wanted something more 9 to 5, and I fell in love with Island Park and the administration. George Marr, the former superintendent of schools, made everybody feel like part of the family. Everyone here has been supportive of me personally and of my desire to improve my education, which benefitted the kids in Island Park.”

Gould will receive the Island Park PTA's Partner for Life award during a ceremony on June 3. It's a new award created by the PTA this year to honor those employees who exemplify service and dedication to students. Needless to say, Gould is its first recipient.

“If there's one word I can use to sum up Mrs. Gould, it's trust,” said PTA President Tara Byrne. "She's wonderful and she's terrific with kids; they love her and the parents trust her. We look to her for advice. When you get a call from Mrs. Gould, you know your child is sick. And the children respect her as well — they all know they can't fool her, they can't pull the wool over her eyes.”

Gould began her nursing career after she graduated from the Lennox Hill Hospital School of Nursing. She later earned a B.S. and master's degree in nursing from Molloy College. She continually receives training, she said, and attends courses at local hospitals. She said she works to keep staff and the community educated about health concerns and wellness, while being on hand as a resource for concerned parents and employees.

“Communication is the key, particularly with children," Gould said. “Your dog might be dying at home and that's upsetting for your child. If we don't know about it, we can't judge why your kid is having a bad day. There is no stupid phone call. I want to know if someone in the family is sick because it impacts on the child.”

Gould, an East Rockaway native and Garden City resident, said she's learned to appreciate the “frankness” of children during her career.

“These kids are brutally honest,” she said. “If they say you're ugly, you're ugly. But to help them grow into valuable members of the community has been very important to me.”

While Gould has been honored in the past — she was given an award by the PTA in 1991 — she said she is grateful for the recognition.

“It's unbelievable to feel the love, caring and the trust,” she said.

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