This past May, as the profession celebrated National RN Recognition Day and the 130th anniversary of its national organization during the opening week of National Nurses Month, retired nurse Eileen Kupper-Grubbs was honored at the Oklahoma State Capitol.
Serving on the front lines of healthcare advocacy, she was formally recognized on May 6 by Oklahoma Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, for her exceptional contributions to the legislative community. Honored through the Oklahoma Nurses Association’s Nurse of the Day Program, her presence at the Capitol underscored the vital connection between clinical practice and state healthcare policy.
“Over my time in office, I have had the privilege of getting to know Eileen and witnessing firsthand the compassion, humility and servant leadership that define her life,” Standridge said in a statement.
“Her dedication to our nation’s veterans is not something she turns on and off-it is who she is. She dedicated her professional nursing career to caring for veterans at
the Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Even in retirement, she continues serving those who served us all through her work as 2nd Vice Commander of Norman American Legion Post 88.”
Kupper-Grubbs has been a member of both The American Legion and The American Legion Auxiliary since 2020.
“I have watched Eileen tirelessly organize events, support veterans and their families and ensure that the sacrifices of our servicemen and women are never forgotten. She leads with a deep love of country and a profound respect for those willing to defend it.”
When asked why she chose to become
a VA nurse, Kupper-Grubbs said, “I am a Veteran, and my father, brother, and one sister were in the Army. Veterans are a precious few who would die for the United States. I wanted to be part of their care.”
“Those words capture the heart of who she is, someone who answered the call to serve long after her uniform was put away,” Standridge said.
“Today, I ask all Oklahomans to join me in recognizing and thanking Nurse Eileen Kupper-Grubbs for a lifetime of selfless service, compassion, and unwavering devotion to our veterans and our community,” Standridge said.
Kupper-Grubbs led a life steeped in military service and nursing. She was a military child whose father served in the Korean War. Her father’s sister, Florence, went to nursing school, where she met Kupper-Grubbs’ later-to-be mother. When her father returned from the war, his sister, Florence, introduced them.
Kupper-Grubbs’ grandmother, Lois, was a private nurse to a family in Illinois. “My mother was a diploma nurse. I am the third of four generations of nurses in my family,” Kupper-Grubbs said. “My sister is an advanced practice registered nurse. My niece, Christine, is an assistant professor and a coordinator in the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program at Oklahoma State University. Her doctoral degree is from the University of Oklahoma.”
Kupper-Grubbs is a U.S. Army Veteran whose post-military career was highly focused on healthcare and now veteran advocacy in retirement. She served for three years as a Military Police (MP) officer. She also received written training in healthcare during her enlistment.
After her service, she graduated from Cameron University in Lawton with an associate’s degree in nursing using the GI bill. She moved to Moore, Oklahoma and attended Central State University to earn a Bachelor of Science in Nursing with a minor in psychology.
She then worked for seven years at Oklahoma City’s major teaching hospital, Oklahoma Memorial Hospital. It has since been renamed OU Health University of Oklahoma Medical Center, which is now Oklahoma’s primary teaching hospital.
Her first nursing job was as a medical/surgical nurse, and she became interested in transplantation.
She and her husband, Eric Grubbs, whom she married in June of 1979, moved
to Ohio when he got a job near The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Kupper-Grubbs served on the transplant floor there, did research and was published in the widely circulated RN magazine.
When Eric and Eileen Kupper-Grubbs moved back to Oklahoma, she became a certified transplant nurse. She transitioned from Oklahoma Memorial to Deaconess Hospital to continue her clinical experience in medical-surgical healthcare. Kupper-Grubbs provided dedicated service to the VA Oklahoma City Healthcare System for 13 years, beginning in October 2012. Board-Certified Medical-Surgical Registered Nurse Kupper-Grubbs served as a care manager within the healthcare system, coordinating complex treatment plans, managing resources, and advocating directly for patient needs. She specialized in acute care, patient stabilization, and post-surgical recovery, alongside fulfilling roles in palliative and ambulatory care settings.
She fulfilled her dedication to nursing as the final chapter of her 41-year nursing career at the OKCVA, retiring in June 2024.
“I am now a volunteer advocate at LifeShare Transplant Donor Services of Oklahoma, Inc. and a donor family member. My nephew, Jeremy, was a kidney and liver donor,” Kupper-Grubbs said. “I have been a docent in the Natural Wonders Gallery at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History for 17 years. I also volunteer with the Cleveland County Election Board.”
Kupper-Grubbs said, “129 years after my grandfather was born, our family has been in service to others,” she said. “We have had four members in the US Army. My son graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 2006 and is currently serving in Korea. My niece Christine is teaching future nurses in Oklahoma.”
“Life does repeat itself, as you see,” Kupper-Grubbs said. “Nursing is an art, not a science; caring for others after caring for yourself is a calling.”
Story and photos by Darl DeVault, contributing editor
