Guyanese Lt. Col. Deborah Anglin serves as safety officer in US Army Reserve

Guyanese-born Lt. Col. Deborah Anglin is currently serving as a safety officer in the US Army Reserve.

In 2013, Lt. Col. Anglin became a veteran after serving to support Operation Enduring Freedom.

Anglin told Caribbean Life over the weekend that she never imagined that she would serve the country, in that capacity, which adopted her.

Through her mobilization, Anglin she “learned what it is to serve, with an in-dept view of a true soldier.

“This task was accomplished while attending to veterans and wounded warriors at William Beaumont Army Medical Center,” she said.

On her discharge, Anglin said she realized “the continued need for support of the fellow soldiers and veterans.”

She said this led to her forming Joy’s Delights Community Outreach program for veterans and unhoused individuals.

On her promotion to lieutenant colonel in the United States Army Reserve Nurse Corps, Anglin said she “proudly” serves as a safety officer and unit prevention leader, among many other responsibilities she may be tasked to conduct.

At the same time, she continues to work as a nurse educator and nurse consultant for other proprietary schools.

“The steps of a man are established by the Lord when he delights in his way,” said Anglin, quoting Psalms 37:23.

Her other major military duty assignments include: Clinical/Intensive Care Nurse, 344th Combat Support Hospital; BCLS Instructor, 344th CSH, Fort Totten; Chief Nurse, 372nd Minimal Care Detachment (MCD); Instructor, Combat Life Support, Fort Indian Town Gap; Selected Trauma Training Program, Kings County Hospital; Chief Nurse, 372nd Minimal Care Detachment (MCD); Medical/Surgical Nurse, Individual Ready Reserve; and NE Medical Area Readiness Support Group (Unit Prevention Leader, Primary).

In her civilian life, Anglin is owner, director and chief executive officer of the Beacon Healthcare School in Brooklyn; and is the director and sole proprietor of HearttmSmart CPR Classes in which she teaches Heart Saver CPR/AED to non-healthcare providers and teaches PR/BCLS to healthcare providers.

Anglin brings more than 25 years of experience in the healthcare field to the very challenging position at Beacon Healthcare School.

She began her career as a home health aide in 1986 and quickly enrolled, graduated, and began employment as a licensed practical nurse (LPN) at Coney Island Hospital.

While working as an LPN, she completed her Associate Degree in Applied Sciences (AAS) and graduated with the Steven S. Frauenthal Leadership Award from the Helene Fuld College of Nursing.

Within two years, Anglin said she was promoted and transferred to the Surgical Intensive Care Unit (SICU), where she found her niche in nursing as a critical care nurse.

Anglin is also a graduate of St. Joseph’s College in Brooklyn, where she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing (BSN), and is a graduate of Downstate College of Nursing with a Master’s degree in nursing as a Clinical Nurse Specialist.

Anglin said she has completed her studies to become a licensed proprietary school instructor with the New York State Education Department, Bureau of Proprietary School Supervision, and is a registered health educator and a subject matter expert with the National Health Career Association.

She has a wealth of experience in home care, having worked as a field supervisor for over eight years and was later promoted to director of clinical services.

Anglin said she has taught adult education classes both in the home care field and at the college level for paraprofessionals.

In 2003, she joined the staff at Kingsborough Community College’s Office of Continuing Education, where she single-handedly pioneered the Healthcare Professional Institute in coordinating paraprofessional healthcare classes.

As a coordinator, she was not only responsible for hiring and training instructors, but also mentoring thousands of students in their quest for a healthcare career and brighter tomorrow.

Anglin served as an advisor on many grant proposals for Kingsborough Community College; and, through the years, she led the college in becoming one of the more successful continuing education healthcare programs for the City University of New York (CUNY).

She resigned in 2012 to concentrate on growing her own business – Beacon Healthcare School, Inc., “a beacon in home care training; providing training for the best Home Health Aides and Certified Nurses’ Aides in NYC since 2005.”

In 2014-2016, Anglin returned to Kingsborough Community College as a Clinical Adjunct Professor.

Anglin is involved in numerous charity projects in Brooklyn, Jamaica, Haiti and Grenada.

Since 2012 she has been collaborating with the Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique Nurses’ Association of America, training police officers, healthcare workers and nurses in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR); conducting seminars in customer service and effective communication; preventing and treating pressure wounds; and caring for the elderly.

Anglin said her passion for the culinary arts has led her in a new direction. For the past seven years, Anglin said she has “cooked up a storm” to periodically provide meals for the homeless and veterans, thanks to the blessings of her late father.

As a member of The Salvation Army and as a Christian, Anglin said gives “all praises to God and the everlasting support” of her parents, son, friends and staff for her continued success as a daughter, mother, director, instructor and motivational speaker.