From the Front Lines to Nursing at VA’s Bay Pines
Like so many men and women he served with, and those who followed, Eduardo Alegria will never forget his first deployment. It was 2003, and he was smack in the middle of Iraq as part of the surge.
At only 23 years of age, Alegria could not foresee that this would change his life and put him on a path toward becoming the assistant nurse manager of Surgery Specialty Care Clinics at the Bay Pines VA Healthcare System.
Alegria grew up in Peru – the middle of three kids and the son of a pilot in the Peruvian army. Like his father, Alegria decided he was going to fly. At 16 years old, he became a student in the Peruvian Air Force Academy.
He said that although his desire to succeed was strong, he struggled with academics and made the choice to leave the program. Shortly after, Alegria received a call from the States.
“My uncle had recently been promoted to sergeant major in the U.S. Army, and he asked me, ‘what are you doing with your life?’” Alegria recalled. “He asked me to come to America and try to join the U.S. Army.”
Although he didn’t speak English well at the time, Alegria took his uncle up on the offer and came North.
“My uncle was an infantryman, and told me, ‘Whatever you do, don’t pick artillery,” Alegria shared. “But, English wasn’t my first language, and I didn’t really understand when the recruiter was talking to me about this job that looked awesome. I picked artillery without really realizing it.”
A few months after that initial meeting, Alegria graduated One Station Unit Training as a 13B (Cannon Crewmember). He was assigned to Ft. Campbell and earmarked for his first deployment.
While in country, Alegria became one of 35,000 combat Veterans who earned a Purple Heart from Operation Iraqi Freedom. He said his experience with the medics and health care personnel in Iraq, Spain, and at Fort Campbell, Ky. who “put him back together,” served as a wake-up call.
“Something just told me that I wanted to be the guy who helped me,” Alegria said.
After his wounds healed, the 23-year-old artilleryman made a choice that would again change his life.
Alegria spoke to his recruiter and soon, he was headed to San Antonio, Texas, to become a medic.
After graduation, he was reassigned to a new unit and shortly thereafter prepared for his second deployment – this time as a combat medic. Just as he had wanted, Alegria got the chance to do the job he felt he was meant to do and pay it forward to his comrades in arms.
“Hearing someone yell, ‘medic’ for the first time is music to the ears,” Alegria continued. “Although we hope we’re never needed, we train for these moments, and people look to you to be the difference maker in health-related and life-or-death situations.”
At the 12-year mark, Alegria made the choice to leave the service and pursue his nursing degree. He credits his wife, Melinda, who is also part of the Bay Pines VA family, with giving him the confidence he needed to make a change.
“She’s amazing,” Alegria said. “When she looked at me and said, ‘I support you, and we can do this together,’ that’s all I needed.”
He enrolled as part of the VCARE nursing program at the University of South Florida (USF) and met his goal of earning his nursing degree from USF College of Nursing.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Alegria was working as an emergency room nurse at a private medical facility in Sarasota. As the VA ramped up operations to support Veterans, he received a call from Pedro Gomez, a U.S. Air Force Veteran, and former classmate of Alegria’s at USF, about coming to work with him at Bay Pines VA.
“I was hesitant at first about working for VA because I heard all the horror stories, but when I got to Bay Pines, that wasn’t the case,” Alegria said. “Being here feels like being part of a big family.”
Alegria values the common bonds that he and other Veteran nurses share with those they serve. “When they learn I’m a Veteran, I think it puts them at ease, and it gives them a sense of appreciation knowing that like them, I understand what it’s like to serve.”