A New Sense of Freedom and Trust in God
Julie Remer is a pediatric nurse in the United States, but after 14 years in the same job, she felt like it was time for a new adventure. Leaving her job behind, Julie found freedom to do something she’d wanted to for quite some time — volunteer with Mercy Ships.
Julie and her husband boarded the Africa Mercy and spent three months volunteering and having their eyes opened to new possibilities.
In this episode, Julie shares about the joy of getting to build relationships with her patients and one special woman who touched her heart. Julie tells of the privilege of freely praying with patients and unforgettable dance parties through the halls of the hospital.
Julie’s obedience to step out in faith will encourage you to trust God in all things.
Looking for a way to join our mission of bringing hope and healing? Partner with us through a gift, volunteering with us, or by joining us in prayer.
New Mercies Podcast Transcript
Welcome to the New Mercies, a podcast by Mercy Ships, where we’ll take you behind the scenes and on board our incredible hospital ships that are transforming lives all over the world. We invite you to join us each week as we sit down with our crew, patients, volunteers, and partners to hear their stories of life-changing hope and healing.
Julie Remer had been a pediatric nurse in the same hospital for 14 years when she sensed it was time for a move. She always wanted to volunteer with Mercy Ships and now seem to be the perfect time to dive in. So she and her husband left their comfortable, known jobs and walked up the gangway of the Africa Mercy to volunteer in Dakar, Senegal. Here’s my interview with nurse Julie Remer.
Raeanne Newquist:
Julie, welcome to New Mercies.
Julie Remer:
Thank you.
Raeanne:
We got to hear from your husband last week and he made it sound a little bit like you were really the impetus in going on this adventure to Mercy Ships because you are a nurse and you had heard about Mercy Ships many years ago. Tell us a little bit how you heard about Mercy Ships and why this was on your heart to go serve.
Julie:
I had a friend through Facebook, who I went to nursing school with. And that’s where I originally heard about Mercy Ships because she had gone and had posted about it. So I looked into it and thought that it would be amazing. Yeah, such a wonderful life experience and opportunity to serve. And that was back in 2014. And I had considered going then and I started the application but never submitted it. I think I was just scared. It’s a big step to leave my job that I’d had maybe five years at that point. And it’s a lot of logistics to figure out with getting rid of all your stuff or putting your things in storage, so I didn’t go back in 2014. And then Josh and I got married almost four years ago and we had talked about it here and there. We also are hoping to have kids, and obviously, if we had kids, then Mercy Ships short-term would not be an option. And so we’d kind of talked about where we would invest our energy and decided to apply to Mercy Ships, and we’ll see what happens.
And if we, you know, are pregnant before then okay, that’s an answer from God that not right now. We applied in January of 2020. And then in May, they reached out and said, Hey, can you come in June? And we said, No, there’s too much to coordinate in the next four weeks, we can’t make this happen. But, we had a much more serious conversation about this and asked, when could we do this? And we said, you know, we need a couple months. So we decided we’re available in September until the end of the year. And so sure enough, come July, we heard from them, and then we were there in September.
Raeanne:
Now you got on board in the hospital. Correct? You were serving as a nurse?
Julie:
Yes, yes.
Raeanne:
And in the United States, you’re a pediatric nurse? Did you have a different role in nursing on board?
Julie:
I hadn’t cared for adult patients since nursing school, back in 2008. So it’s been a few years. And on the ship I cared for probably mostly pediatric patients. But I also cared for adult patients. And that was new. So yeah, I did care for adult patients. So in California, I know that we have nice patient ratios compared to in other states as far as nursing. And so I was used to caring for two to four patients at my hospital and then on the ship, I think the fewest I cared for was three and sometimes on night shift, it was as many as I don’t know, 11. But I didn’t ever feel like it was an unreasonable patient load. And I always felt safe and people supported me and the nursing. It was very different from what I’m used to and it was wonderful! I had a lot more time with patients and there was a lot more focus on building relationships and that was wonderful.
Raeanne:
Well, what was your first impression when you first got on board and went down into the hospital in the wards, and you saw the patients for the first time? What was your first impression?
Julie:
I arrived during the middle of the plastics rotation, which I don’t know if it’s every field service, but this field service had tons of kids during the plastics rotation. So for me, I thought, oh yes, this is what I know. But what I’m not used to is, I walk onto the unit and these kids don’t know me, but instantly coming up and give hugs, and are just so sweet and warm and welcoming. There were children running everywhere, sometimes it was a little bit chaotic. And think about the hospital setting that I’m used to with mostly private rooms. And if somebody has to be moved into a room with two patients, a double room, as a charge nurse, it’s one of my least favorite conversations because nobody likes it. And it’s always a difficult conversation. And then you walk onto the ward on the ship, and there’s 16 to 20 patients in one room. And if they’re pediatric patients, then they have a caregiver who sleeps under the bed of the patient. And to see this it’s a lot to take in. There is such a cultural difference. These people are not bothered by being in a room with 20 other people and crying babies, and a 70-year-old man over here, and a 2-year-old girl over here, and everyone’s fine.
And in the morning it wasn’t uncommon that somebody might go to each patient and caregiver and greet them. And you know, there’s this back and forth of how’s your family? Hello. And that was just so unusual from nursing in Southern California. Oh, yeah, that would never fly here. No, you know, in the United States it’s an uncomfortable conversation to have, when you’re telling a patient, okay, we’re bringing one other patient in your room, there’ll be a curtain between you, but it’s a shared room, and nobody wants that. But then, you know, when you’re on the ship, and especially, it’s not even just unique to the ship, but in Africa, there’s such a community focus, and people are community-minded, they don’t even balk at all being together.
Raeanne:
I have talked to some other nurses on the podcast about this. I just think that must aid so much in their healing to be together. I had twin babies, our first children were identical twin girls. And they were in the NICU when they were first born for quite some time. And they were separated. But the day that they put them in a bed together was a big deal. And all the nurses were excited about it. And I kind of thought, well, first, the pictures will be much cuter to have them together. But what’s the big deal? And they said, Oh, they heal a lot more quickly, they will develop and they will be stronger, if they are in the same bed together. And if we know that about babies, you know, how much more could our culture benefit from that — there is healing when we are together? Did you experience that as a nurse in the wards with multiple people, that they aided in one another’s healing?
Julie:
Oh, yes. Pretty often, as far as scheduled admissions, they come a night before their surgery, or like the evening before. And so it wasn’t uncommon that people would be kind of scared or just, you know, unsure of things. With every admission, patients and caregivers who are already there would go and talk to the new patient and say, it’s going to be okay, and really just right away, bring them into the group. And, you know, they had friends and support instantly, like from the moment they arrived.
One day when I took care of a patient named Khumba, she had a dressing change on her arm and she was just in excruciating pain. And it took a little bit for us to figure out what the best medication regimen and best thing for her, but in the meantime, there were four or five women around her bed, caregivers and patients, trying to calm her and talk to her and holding her hand and just doing anything they could to support her in this time.
There were so many moments like that where the patients and family supported each other. And it’s just beautiful, and not something that you have the opportunity to see in the States. And yeah, it was heartwarming.
Raeanne:
Julie, tell us what was a highlight for you, in your job as a nurse on board.
Julie:
I have not had the time to spend with patients that I had on Mercy Ships. It wasn’t uncommon that I would finish my tasks and think like, oh, I have an hour or two until my next task and so I look around and think probably somebody needs help. No, everybody else has also finished their tasks. And I see there’s an Uno game happening over here and puzzle happening over there and bracelet making over there. And so I thought, what activity am I going to join?
And that was just wonderful! In nursing, a lot of times we wish we had more time to spend with patients. But there’s just too much work to be done, too many patients to care for, too many things to document, and you don’t have the time. And often on the ship, I got to spend time with my patients, I got to get to know them and that was just such a wonderful surprise and wonderful thing. Josh also mentioned it a little bit — when patients are discharged, and 2022 was the first time the ship was back in service since COVID. And so there were still some restrictions in place and one of those was that when patients left, they walked out the gangway on deck three where the hospital is, but then everybody else could stand up on deck seven, and wave the patients off. Communication would go out to the ship, like hey, patients leaving in 10 minutes, the HOPE Center just got here. So then it wasn’t uncommon that there would be 10,20, or 30 people up on deck seven, waving the patients off. And later on, as the field service progressed, eventually we got to wave them off on the dock and the Hope Center van would drive off and we could wave the patients off. And it was so wonderful. And you know, I wish we could do that in the hospitals in the US. When patients are leaving, this is a big deal, you’ve gone through something huge, you’ve gone through this surgery. And you know, it’s an appropriate send off. And it was so wonderful to be a part of that and really get to celebrate that transformation.
Raeanne:
But also, like you said, you get to build these relationships. And you want to say goodbye, you want to honor them and say you matter and you left an imprint on my heart. And I want to cheer you on as you as you leave.
Julie:
Yes, another thing that was new for me in the hospital, and that was just wonderful was praying for patients. So I come from a secular organization and praying is not encouraged, it’s not talked about, it’s probably discouraged. It was wonderful that on my first admission, somebody’s walking me through it and the last thing we do — the patient just arrived, and the next day they’ll have surgery and after we’ve gone over all of the details with them, we say, would you like me to pray for you? And I know that most likely they’re Muslim, they know that most likely, I’m Christian. And I was unsure how that would be received. Never once did anybody tell me no. They were so thankful and grateful that I would pray for them. And after the prayer they would say a very warm thank you, or have a short prayer for me. And it was wonderful that was able to be incorporated, that prayer was incorporated into a regular part of my nursing job, that was such a blessing to me.
I want to share a memory that will stick with me forever when I was working on the ship. So it wasn’t uncommon on the evening shift that somebody would get a Bluetooth speaker, and patients, caregivers, staff, day crew, anybody who was around would dance up and down the hallway, just back and forth, sometimes maybe 30 minutes, 40 minutes, just dance. And one of the first times I experienced this was during the maxillofacial rotation. And so people had significant bandages on their heads faces, some head drains coming out of their mouth or their chin. And I just remember, patients and caregivers joyful and just dancing up and down the hallway. And you know, these people who have been ostracized, who have this heavy burden of you or your family is cursed, and now to see them relieved of that burden, and nobody in the room is judging them. Nobody is having these thoughts about them. It was so joyful. It nearly brought me to tears because I just thought, you know, this is a little taste of heaven, and something that I have not experienced before. And I don’t know that I’ll experience it unless maybe on the ship again. I will take that with me and just savor it.
Raeanne:
Well, was there a patient in particular that stood out to you that you can tell us about?
Julie:
I had mentioned earlier that I cared for Khumba and she was just wonderful. Working in Southern California, it’s not uncommon to have a language barrier. I speak some Spanish but anything more than very basic hello, I have somebody else who actually speaks Spanish step in. On the ship, I learned a few short phrases, I can say hello and a typical greeting. But, it is surprising how much you can communicate without speaking the language.
I cared for Khumba, one of the days when she had just a great deal of pain, and I did my best with figuring out a medication regimen that worked for her and she was there for probably two months. She had a burn to her left arm when she was maybe four years old. The house was on fire and she rescued her little sister from the house and in the process, her whole arm was burned. So really like from her shoulder to the palm of her hand, everything was burned. And so they did grafts from her thigh, they took some tissue from her abdomen, and did a lot of fancy cutting and pasting and put it all over her arm. She had a little bit more functionality of that hand by the time she left. But she just had a hard time, it was so much grafted tissue that she just had a really hard time with the wound healing.
Raeanne:
Wow. How old was she then when she received surgery? You mentioned she was four when she was burned?
Julie:
She was in her early 30s I think.
Raeanne:
Oh, okay. So it had been quite some time that she had had these burns?
Julie:
Yes, she was burned when she was young and then scar tissue does not grow like our normal tissue. And so the skin was just very contracted and her hand was stuck up to her shoulder. And she couldn’t use that arm because her arm was completely bent.
Raeanne:
Oh, my goodness, that must have been incredible for her then to have that released after all those years?
Julie:
Yes, yes. She worked with the physical therapist, you know, the whole time that she was on the ship. And I know that she had gained some function. And I know that there’s hope that she will continue to gain function of that arm.
Raeanne:
What was it about her that impressed you, or that made a mark on you?
Julie
Part of it was just the communication that can happen without speaking the language and that she was just so warm. And every time I saw her, she wanted to give me a big hug, and would grab my hand and just give me this look that she was just so thankful. I haven’t experienced many times in my life, just that the ability to communicate, just caring for somebody and being thankful. And for her to be able to communicate that without us speaking the same language was just really wonderful.
Raeanne:
What are some things that you and your husband did? on your days off? Did you guys get to have some fun?
Julie:
We did. We did a lot of exploring around town. The first time we went out, it was after lunch and it was with so the two of us and then one other friend who had not been on the ship before and another friend who was in Senegal in the infamous 2020 shutdown. And so Josh and I had said do you want to you guys want to go with us, and we just want to explore around the ship and see what’s here. And so we walked around town, and Maddie, my friend who had been there before, when we got back, were all drenched in sweat. It looks like I might as well have just come from the pool, like just jumped in the pool and jumped out, that’s how sweaty we were. And she said, Yeah, you know, when you guys said, You just wanted to go on a walk, I was thinking like, okay, I guess I’ll go with them. And she said, but most people go on a walk to somewhere and then sit in the AC and cool down and then walk back to the ship. So we learned that you don’t just go on a walk in the humid season at one in the afternoon. And there’s so much traffic.
Raeanne:
Now, was this your first experience in Africa?
Julie:
Yes. So for both of us, it was our first time in Africa.
Raeanne:
Senegal is awesome. So many neat things to see. Y’all have to go back.
Julie:
Yes. You know, we hope to.
Raeanne:
So Julie, tell me how you saw lives being changed on board.
Julie:
There’s the obvious — people came in with this major deformity or the use of an appendage. And then when they leave, we have in most cases restored a lot of function or removed big tumors. So there’s the physical change that happens. But something that I was not aware of that I learned was part of the Senegalese culture, was that when people have these major deformities, it’s seen as a curse. That either you did something wrong or your family did something wrong or is cursed and that’s why you have this huge tumor on your face. And so Josh had mentioned to the joy that you see people leave with and it was wonderful to see that and that these people who suffered being ostracized and carrying this weight of everyone thinking I did something wrong, or my family did something wrong and now they can leave with that weight, hopefully lifted, and it appears that it is lifted with the joy that people leave with. And yeah, so it was wonderful seeing people who came in quiet and reserved and left just full of life and bursting with joy. And it was wonderful to see that.
Raeanne:
It leaves an imprint on your heart, for sure. And you when you realize that this suffering goes much deeper than the physical for a lot of these patients that we take care of, it kind of changes your mindset about people in need — the needs are deeper than what we can really see. Julie, in your three months on board, I know that it impacted your heart and changed you. What are some changes that you’ve seen in yourself since you went? And how are you going to incorporate those when you go back to working in the hospital here in the US?
Julie:
It took a leap of faith for both Josh and me to quit our jobs and just go do this trip for three months. I had been at the same job on the same unit for 14 years before that. And I’m not typically somebody who likes change, I like security, I like consistency. And that was another reason why when we consider doing this, both Josh and I felt like it might be time to be done with our jobs, we both felt this on an individual level. And in many ways, it was scary. And in so many ways God came through. And like Josh said, we were able to rent out our house, and we raised support. And so thankfully, we were able to have all of our expenses covered with both of our jobs, and both of us deciding to quit. I needed a really good reason to leave this job that I loved where I had been for 14 years, and Mercy Ships was the perfect reason. And now I think I have a new sense of freedom since we’ve done Mercy Ships and my trust in God that He will provide and that he has our best plan in place and already planned for us and I couldn’t have known that before we did this. Josh and I have hoped to have kids and still hope to and if that doesn’t happen, I know that God has a better plan for us. So I think this has given me a new sense of freedom and confidence that God has my back. And he is planning for Josh and me even if we don’t see it. You know, sometimes it can take a while before you can know what God has planned for you, but he has plans and they’re the best.
Raeanne:
Absolutely. I heard someone say once where there’s risk, there’s reward. And sometimes it is a little risky to step away from your job. There’s that old phrase that says the hardest part is stepping out of the boat. You know, first you’ve got to take a step out of the boat. Well, I kind of joke with Mercy Ships, the hardest thing is taking a step on board. Right?
Julie:
Yes, the first step on board is harder than stepping off the boat. But yeah, it’s amazing.
Raeanne:
When you’re able to kind of say, God, I know that you are good. And I know that you love me and have my best in mind. It’s hard to step away from the security of a job that you’ve known and loved. I think your husband mentioned last week the people that he loved working with too. But to step away and to risk, to step away, I guess with God, I don’t know how much risk there is, though, because, you know, he’s so faithful. But to step in obedience to where he’s calling you is hard. It’s hard to do that. But the rewards and the blessings are so incredible. Well, Julie, I thank you so much for sharing with us a little bit about your mercy ship story today and I’m so excited that you did step out of your job and step on board with Mercy Ships and make an impact, but also to walk away with a life changed. So thanks for sharing that with us today.
Julie:
Thanks so much for having me.
For more information about Mercy Ships, go to mercyships.org, and to keep up with the guests on New Mercies, follow us on Instagram at NewMerciesPodcast.