Soul of 78: Angela Lacy
RN Clinical Manager, Southeast Hospice Network
Words by Micah Harrison | Image by Ryan McGill
As a child, Angela Lacy spent many nights with her aunts, Linda and Brenda Pike. In the mornings, she watched as her aunt Linda prepared for work, carefully studying her neatly pressed, bright white nursing uniform and accompanying cap. "I'd sit on the bed and think, 'I want to be that one day," Angela recalls.
During her senior year at Carbon Hill High School, Angela first dipped her toes into the nursing field as she worked as an assistant at the local nursing home. After graduating with an associate degree from Walker College, Angela began studying in the nursing program at Northwest Alabama Community College.
After graduating as a Registered Nurse (RN) in 1993 and starting her career in home healthcare, Angela and her husband moved to Mississippi to care for her father-in-law during his recovery from an illness. While living in Mississippi, Angela took her first job as a hospice nurse, providing care in patients' homes. She learned that, by entering these personal spaces, hospice nurses do more than administer treatments. They become part of the families they serve, ensuring that the end-of-life journey is met with dignity and surrounded by care.
Upon returning to Jasper in the late 1990s, Angela continued her career in hospice for almost a decade. After a brief stint as a hospital nurse at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), Angela fully embraced her calling as a hospice nurse at her current workplace, Southeast Hospice Network.
For the first 15 years of her career at Southeast, Angela worked as a bedside hospice nurse, providing a compassionate presence in the homes of those facing life's final chapter. Last year, she transitioned to her current role as RN Clinical Manager, overseeing all aspects of care the company provides. This role enables her to mentor new nurses and share the knowledge she gained during her years at the bedside.
In patients' homes, where personal memories linger in every corner, and the comfort of familiar surroundings can ease the burden of illness, Angela and her team offer a reassuring presence that underscores the very essence of hospice home care. The goal is to make every moment count because every patient's journey matters.
"We are all about comfort and doing everything we can right there in their homes," Angela says. "We get so bonded with these families in their homes, and that is one of the most meaningful parts of the job when you wind up being part of the family."
Through Angela's story, we are reminded that "home" is not merely where we reside, but where we connect, where we are nurtured, and ultimately, where we find our most significant comfort and support. 78