By Kristen Simpson

S he’s a nurse, an educator and a retired United States Air Force Reserve colonel. She’s a philanthropist, a patron of music and a constant volunteer. She supports her extended family and is a shepherd to others. She’s intense, passionate and curious.

She’s retired Col. Maidana K. Nunn (’57), DNSc, USAF Reserve. She’s traveled to almost every country and operates with four main passions: faith, her country, children, and animals.

“I was just curious,” Nunn said. “These opportunities would come about and I’d say, ‘Well, let me try and see what I can do.’ I was always busy doing something — I think I’ve had a rich, full life.”

Nunn was born in December 1932 in rural Barnesville, Georgia, and moved around Middle Georgia with her mother after her father perished in a 1936 auto accident. She grew up all over the state and eventually graduated from Butler High School in 1949.

This is where her nursing career began. Nunn graduated from the Macon Hospital School of Nursing in August 1952 and became a registered nurse.

Chasing a job, Nunn ended up in Milledgeville at Central State Hospital — and she didn’t intend to stay. But after her uncle, who was contracted with the college to tune pianos, convinced her it was “the best school in the state of Georgia,” Nunn began studying social science at what was then Georgia State College for Women.

“I thought they always had very good professors over there,” Nunn said. “It was just a fun place to be.”

With classes only available during the day, she attended morning lectures and walked to work at the hospital for her 3 to 11 p.m. shift.

“I allowed myself the luxury of a baccalaureate education,” she said. “It was sheer frustration, but I finally got a Bachelor of Arts degree.”

Nunn jumped from opportunity to opportunity, chasing her curiosities and furthering her education. She went on to get her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the Medical College of Georgia in 1958, a Master of Science from the University of Maryland in 1963, and a Doctor of Nursing Science from Boston University in 1970.

“I just have so much curiosity, so I wanted to learn as much as I could,” Nunn said. “I think sometimes children can be frightened of trying to get into something, and you have to say, ‘It’s not all that bad, c’mon, let’s see what you can do.’”

When she heard Robins Air Force Base in Warner Robins, Georgia, was trying to form a reserve unit within their hospital, Nunn jumped at the chance.

The opportunity kickstarted her 21-year career in the military, where she studied flight nursing and rose to captain, major and then colonel. The whole time, she chased training and education opportunities within her field.

While she’s never been in combat, Nunn participated in downrange missions to Panama, helped transport people from one European country to another on weekends, and ran hospital units.

“We’d go through Germany, Spain and England — that’s a lot for one weekend,” she said, laughing. “You were supposed to take clothes for all seasons, because you never knew where in the world they would take you or what they were going to do with you.”

For about 12 years, she continued working part-time in some outside nursing capacity.

She was stationed in Myrtle Beach, Florida, during Operation Desert Storm for four months and afterward traveled back to a familiar place, Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama. She remained there until her retirement in 1992, concluding what she considers her favorite part of her career.

For the last five years, Nunn has lived at The Cottages in Milledgeville, where she often attends musical productions and continues to volunteer in whatever capacity she is able.

She is a benefactor of the Dr. Maidana Nunn ’57 Scholarship, a $25,000 endowed fund for GCSU music students, a champion of children, the community and a pillar for The Department of Music.

“When I attended GSCW, the cost was $45 per quarter for 17 quarter hours, with a $5 student activity fee,” Nunn said. “I was fortunate, so I don’t mind helping anybody who needs help.”

“I like most every kind of music,” she said. “I’m not a scholar or anything like that, but I like seeing other people achieve their dreams.”

Some quotes are courtesy of Robin Grantham, who is involved with the Women in Military Service for America Memorial Foundation. Photos courtesy of Col. Maidana Nunn, with story photography by Anna Gay Leavitt.