Trion’s Own: Berry College Nursing Student Kinzleigh Turner Serves Communities in Kenya

Kinzleigh Turner has always wanted to be present for people in their most vulnerable moments. For the Berry College nursing student and 2024 Trion High School valedictorian, a recent mission trip to Kenya turned that calling into something she will carry throughout her career.

Turner, who is currently in her third year of pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Nursing at Berry College, traveled to Kenya as part of the school’s nursing program, which offers students the opportunity to participate in international healthcare and mission experiences. She maintains a 4.0 GPA, holds membership in the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, and works as a rehabilitation aide at Atrium Health while also serving as a referee and umpire for the Trion Recreation Department, all while completing one of the most demanding academic programs in the country.

She chose to go to Kenya because she wanted to understand healthcare beyond the borders of the United States, learn from another culture, and serve communities with limited access to medical resources.

What she found there exceeded anything she anticipated.

During her time in the country, Turner worked alongside healthcare providers in hospitals, maternity units, schools, villages, and community health clinics. She assisted with patient care, took vital signs, helped with triage, and distributed medications at free medical clinics. She also participated in health education efforts across the communities she visited.

Among the most profound experiences of the trip was her work in labor and delivery care at rural hospitals. Turner witnessed multiple births, provided comfort to laboring mothers, and assisted during the resuscitation of a newborn, moments that deepened her commitment to the profession she is working so hard to enter.

“These experiences strengthened my passion for nursing and showed me the importance of compassionate care, regardless of available resources,” Turner reflected.

But the trip was about more than clinical experience. The mission extended into the heart of the local community, where Turner and her fellow students spent time supporting widowed women who face significant hardship in providing for themselves and their families. One of the most meaningful projects was helping construct a mud home for a widow in the community, a physical reminder that Turner said caring for others reaches far beyond a hospital room.

A day dedicated entirely to a pediatric clinic also left a lasting mark on the group. Students provided health screenings and care for local children while also simply spending time playing and building relationships with them.

“Their joy, energy, and resilience were contagious,” Turner said. “The connections we made with them were some of the most memorable moments of the entire experience.”

Turner returned home with lessons she said she will carry into every patient room for the rest of her life, lessons about resilience, gratitude, cultural humility, and the power of human connection. She saw firsthand how healthcare providers in Kenya deliver quality care despite limited staff, supplies, and equipment, and she witnessed how kindness and compassion can bridge language and cultural divides entirely.

She is set to complete her BSN and begin her nursing career within the year.

Turner expressed deep gratitude to the family members, friends, church family, and community supporters whose donations, encouragement, and prayers made the trip possible.

“Your generosity and belief in me allowed me to participate in an experience that has changed my life,” she said.