Passing of Norine Labitzke

It is with great sadness that we share news of the passing of Norine Labitzke, a long time nurse practitioner in Tallahassee and member of CAPN. Norine was the CAPN 2015 Nurse of Excellence; the write up by then President Julia Pallentino, reminds us of Norine's accomplishments in her career and personal life. She will be missed.

Norine Bardill Labitzke

It is indeed my pleasure to introduce the Tallahassee Area Council of Advanced Practice Nurses, Nurse of Excellence Award winner for 2015.

In preparing to introduce our Nurse of Excellence I have come to realize that there are many things that we don’t know about our colleagues. We know how excellent they are as nurses and how they have contributed to patients and families in their everyday lives as they go about work. That is why we nominate and then select them for this honor. But we often know little about their lives outside the workplace or much about their past.

In preparing remarks for this presentation I did a little digging. And as we all know Google knows all. I learned, much to my surprise, that our Nurse of Excellence was the 1960 Women’s Water Skiing Champion and in 2006 was inducted into the Florida Water Ski Foundation Hall of Fame.

The way that most of her Nurse Practitioner colleagues know Norine Labitzke is from our admiration of her as a nurse practitioner extraordinaire.

Norine holds Masters of Nurse Practitioner Degrees in  not one, not two, but three different specialties: Pediatrics, Psychiatric and Family health. She’s the only person I know who has spent more years in school than me.

Norine has had a long and distinguished nursing career and even today when most of us are thinking of retirement Norine continues to work part time with Children’s Medical Services helping children with some of the most challenging medical and psychiatric problems. Currently she is working with children with autism AND is in the process of beginning a new business.

What is even more remarkable is that Norine continues to do this despite significant health challenges. She has overcome late in life loss of sight with the help of a canine companion that we have all come to know and love and also know that no matter how adorable the companion is, we are not to pet him or her.

Norine even used her personal experience and knowledge with canine companions when she wrote her thesis on the use of animal assisted therapy in the treatment of adolescent patients in a psychiatric facility and published it in the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing

What I have told you is really only the most recent of her nurse practitioner experience. Norine has had a long and fruitful career. I really could not find out more about our Nurse of Excellence without giving away the surprise that we all wanted for her tonight.  Except for one thing—It is my understanding that Norine is also a consummate knitter, something I have never been able to do with full eyesite.

I ask you to join me in celebrating the Tallahassee Area Council of Advanced Practice Nurses Nurse of Excellence for 2015, Norine Labitzke.