Rescue Squad Volunteer Pursues Career as ER Nurse

Since she was a child, Ashley Lively, 25, has had an interest in nursing, since her mother was a pediatric nurse. But her experience over the last nine months volunteering for the South Orange Rescue Squad has deepened her commitment to pursuing a career in emergency medicine.

"The adrenaline rush and knowing that you're doing everything you can to save someone's life—it's priceless," said Lively, who graduated from the nursing program at Rutgers-Newark last year and passed the licensing exam for nurses (NCLEX) this April. She's currently looking for a job at local hospitals and working as an EMT doing transports in the meantime.

A lifelong South Orange resident and graduate of Marshall/Jefferson, South Orange Middle School and Columbia High School ('03) with a 7-year-old son, Ashton, currently enrolled at Marshall, Lively says she's always been drawn to community service and currently works the Saturday night shift at the Rescue Squad. In her tenure there, she's encountered situations that would prepare her for her future career in nursing, like a cardiac arrest case in which the patient didn't survive.

She foresees being a part of the Rescue Squad for years to come.

"I'm going to be a lifetime member. I'm shooting for that," she said. "It's a dynamic group of people. I'm happy to say I'm a part of the Rescue Squad."