Yessenia Garcia-Sanchez, BSN, RN: Investing in the Future
Yessenia Garcia-Sanchez, BSN, RN: Investing in the future
After MedQuest
For Yessenia, MedQuest wasn’t just a summer camp. It was the beginning of a lifelong relationship with NEOAHEC—a community of mentors, opportunities, and support that helped her become the nurse and leader she is today.
Yessenia first attended MedQuest as a teenager, excited but nervous. She was a quiet, introverted student, but within days, she found herself opening up, gaining confidence, and asking questions. She explored a wide range of healthcare careers and got her first taste of the nursing profession during a rotation run by an OHSU nurse in labor and delivery.
“The best part of MedQuest is that I learned how to job shadow,” she said. “The first thing I did once MedQuest was over was call my local hospital.”
That phone call led to her first real-world experience shadowing nurses at a pediatric clinic. She observed nurses taking vitals, educating patients, administering medication, and offering emotional support. Yessenia was hooked. She loved the connection between patients and nurses, and she saw how important that relationship was throughout someone’s stay.
Around the same time, she was also volunteering with the Red Cross. During high school, she went from helping with blood drives to coordinating new events. She also took a job at the local elementary school, starting as an ESL assistant, summer school aide, and eventually becoming a substitute teacher while in nursing school.
“There are opportunities out there; it’s just a matter of seeking them and being willing to take them,” she said.
Finding support
Yessenia took a thoughtful approach to every step of her journey. Even deciding where to go to college was a process. She was nervous about being away from her family and spending so much money on a four-year university. She wrestled with the idea of starting at community college—worried about the stigma—but her mother encouraged her.
“I’m glad I ended up following her advice,” Yessenia said. “There’s a lot of backlash with community colleges, like they’re not good enough, but they really are. It helped me so much in the long run—and I got to stay at home with my family.”
She enrolled at Blue Mountain Community College, excited to begin her college journey. But during her very first week, Yessenia’s father passed away.
The loss was crushing. She considered quitting school. But in her grief, she remembered how much her father had wanted his children to get the education he never had. “It was very hard. I can tell you that the first year was an absolute mess,” she said. “But I had the support of family, friends, and even a lot of my college professors.”
Her professors checked in regularly. Her friends were there when she needed them. Her community lifted her up.
“Use your resources to find a support system,” she said. “Talk to your professors, talk to your teachers, talk to your counselor, anyone—that’s what those staff members are there for, even if it’s not school-related.”
NEOAHEC was one of the support networks she chose.
Staying connected
From rural Umatilla, many of the college and career resources that students in bigger cities take for granted weren’t available. NEOAHEC was one of the few places Yessenia could turn to for support, and she made a point to stay connected. That commitment grew into a leadership role. As a college student, Yessenia joined the NEOAHEC Board of Directors as Student Board Member.
The year the Yessenia attended MedQuest, she was the only person from Umatilla that attended. Since joining the board, she has helped NEOAHEC reach students from her high school. “As a NEOAHEC board member, I want to continue to help represent my community.”
Yessenia also stayed involved in the most hands-on way possible: returning as a MedQuest counselor. She started right after high school and has returned every summer since—2025 being her seventh year.
At first, she wasn’t sure she could lead. But like so many campers she had once been among, she quickly found her voice and confidence. And she helped others find theirs.
“That’s my favorite part,” she said. “Just seeing their personalities come out.”
Over the years, she’s grown close to NEOAHEC staff, especially longtime Camp Director Hailey Hulse. Campers regularly name Yessenia as one of the best parts of their week. One wrote, “Yessenia was always kind and caring. Whatever you needed, she had it or got it for you.”
After camp, students often reach out to her with questions about nursing school, CNA training, or even to ask her to be a reference. She always responds.
Creating community
NEOAHEC doesn’t just encourage communities to form—NEOAHEC is a community. Yessenia comes back to MedQuest because she knows how valuable her experience is to students in rural northeastern Oregon trying to find careers in healthcare. She wants to be there for students who don’t have anyone else to ask for help. “I want to be able to be that resource for those kids.”
After graduating from BMCC, Yessenia was accepted into the OHSU School of Nursing at the La Grande campus. There, she found yet another tight-knit community of professors and students who looked out for one another.
“A lot of us in our class have actually built a really great relationship with our school dean, [Patty Barfield]—she’s amazing,” Yessenia said. “All the professors, they all want to help us succeed. They’re always checking in on us.”
Still, her nursing journey wasn’t without setbacks. After graduation, Yessenia sat for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) exam—but didn’t pass the first time.
She says that it feels really discouraging, like she isn’t good enough to be a nurse, but that’s not true at all. “Don’t get discouraged—take the time to see what you can improve on and study a bit more. You’ve already gotten this far, so just keep going. Be determined.”
She retook the test and passed. In 2023, Yessenia graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Nursing and stepped into a full NEOAHEC board position as Member-at-Large. This role puts her on the Executive Committee, where she helps guide the organization she’s been part of since she was a teenager.
Nurturing her hometown
Now, Yessenia is a nurse at Good Shepherd Hospital in Hermiston, working in labor and delivery—the very same specialty that first sparked her interest during MedQuest. In rural hospitals like Good Shepherd, nurses get to care for patients through their entire experience—from check-in to discharge.
“We do everything from the moment they get there to the moment that they go home with their baby,” she said.
For Yessenia, it’s a perfect fit. She gets to work with patients during a meaningful moment in their lives. And she gets to do it close to home, surrounded by the people she loves. Family has always been a top priority. “I’m very family-oriented,” she said. “I’ve never really wanted to move far away. This is where I grew up, and I just want to stay here and help serve people in this community.”
She isn’t alone at Good Shepherd—she has family members working in the PACU, the Med/Surg floor, in the kitchen, and even in labor and delivery with her, though not usually on the same shift. The relationship with her aunt in the same profession as her has been another source of mentorship and support throughout Yessenia’s journey.
MedQuest showed her that it was possible to have everything she wanted in a career: to care for others, stay close to her family, and make a difference in her hometown.