ConnextCare is pleased to announce the recipient of the annual Kathy A. Ellis Scholarship. This year’s winner is Marissa Wallis, a Clinical Assistant currently working in the Mexico Elementary School Based Health Center.
Wallis is currently pursuing a nursing degree from Onondaga Community College. Wallis received her Nursing Assistant Certificate from BOCES and has worked in the Emergency Department at Oswego Hospital for the past five years, as well as joining the ConnextCare team full-time last year.
Kathleen A. Ellis, was the first Nurse Practitioner in New York State. Ellis was well known in our local community for her passion and commitment to serving our rural population. She worked at Northern Oswego County Health Services, Inc. (NOCHSI), which is now ConnextCare, at the Pulaski location, and spent four years working at NOCHSI’s Mexico Health Center. The community mourned the loss of Ellis when she lost her battle with cancer and passed away in December of 1996 at the age of 52. Every year ConnextCare gives a scholarship to a local individual(s) who is pursuing a career in the field of nursing.
“We are thrilled to announce Marissa as this year’s recipient of the Kathy Ellis Scholarship. This award means a great deal to our community as it celebrates the life of Kathy Ellis, a trailblazer in the nursing profession in New York State,” stated Nancy Deavers, ConnextCare Senior Vice President, Chief Nursing and Quality Officer. “Marissa is an outstanding Clinical Assistant serving in our School Based Health Center program and we are thrilled to be able to assist her in pursuing her goals in the field of nursing!”