CHARLOTTE — Five years ago, our community was in the throes of a COVID lockdown.
Hundreds of people had already lost their lives to the virus, with hospitals treating patients in hallways.
One of those patients was Shirley Hall. She told Channel 9′s Hunter Sáenz that experience struck her to her core, leading her to change careers after 35 years.
“I was taught to be a giver,” Shirley said.
Today, she’s a Certified Nurse Assistant, or CNA, at Novant Health Mint Hill. But her job in that particular field is relatively new for her.
“I started out in banking when I was 19 years old,” Shirley said.
Shirley spent 35 years in corporate America. “I loved it in the mortgage department, I was able to help the customers save their homes through foreclosures,” she said.
Then – COVID hit. “I almost feel like we got hit by a time bomb, and we didn’t see it coming,” Shirley said.
The stay-at-home orders, the masking, the social distancing – restaurants and bars shuttered.
“I became very sad…living alone and kind of being locked out away from the world,” Shirley said.
Shirley’s daughter and grandkids soon moved in, all of them taking precautions and trying to avoid the virus.
But then, the inevitable happened. Her daughter got it first, then Shirley – a fear becoming a reality. “Honestly, it was, oh, Lord, I don’t want to die,” Shirley recalled.
Breathing became a challenge and ultimately, her family called 911. “I remember hearing one of the paramedics say, I’m surprised you’re still alive,” Shirley said.
She added, “As I was being rolled out of my home, I was looking back at my daughter and my boyfriend, and in my mind, I was thinking that this may be the last time that I may see them.”
She knew, at the time, dozens of everyday people were going into hospitals with COVID and never coming out.
“I made a promise to God that if he will allow me to live through COVID, I will walk into my purpose and my passion,” Shirley said.
A promise to serve, and a promise kept. Two months after her hospital stay, Shirley put in her resignation at the bank: “I went and got my CNA license.”
At 54 years old, a career change – paying it forward from the other side of the stretcher. A healthcare hero proving anything is possible with faith and the beat of a caring heart.
When she walks through the doors of Novant Health Mint Hill, Shirley said she feels joy: “It’s the greatest feeling in the world to be able to help everyone that walks through these doors.”
And Shirley isn’t stopping. She’s now in nursing school at age 59.
She hopes her story proves you can do anything at any age.
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