**Jenny Guittard Memorial Award**

From a young age, Jenny had an interest and a desire for a career in health care following in both her parents’ footsteps and entered the BscN program at the U of A. She graduated with honours in 2000. She worked as a hospital housekeeper in her university years and in doing so, developed an observant understanding of the dynamics of patient care.

![Jenny Guittard](https://static.alumniq.com/ualberta/prod/crowdfunding/2025/1752857538840.jpg)

Jenny started her nursing career working at the University hospital in the Hematology unit and later, in the outpatient department. There, she cared for many people with a cancer diagnosis. This led to her lifelong career helping cancer patients at the Cross Cancer Institute. Ongoing learning was very important to Jenny, and she took many extra courses including ICU training. She became a source of inspiration and leadership for her colleagues.  She is remembered by many as a role model, a teacher, and great support system.
                    
In early 2023, Jenny received a devastating pancreatic cancer diagnosis. This came as an unexpected diagnosis since she did not fit the common demographics or lifestyle risk factors of this disease. As a dedicated oncology nurse at the Cross Cancer Institute for 20+ years, she was instantly aware of the severity of her situation. She responded by creating an Instagram blog to document every step of her journey and in doing so, garnered many followers from all over the world. A natural educator, she openly shared her symptoms, treatments, fears, and triumphs.  Many pancreatic cancer patients and their family members were informed and comforted by her words of encouragement and her advice. Her loved ones were all inspired by her decision to live her life as fully as possible.  And that she did.
In her last year, Jenny travelled to her ![]()beloved Puerto Vallarta three times. She and her husband, Alex Burden, were accompanied by several family members on these memorable trips. She enjoyed a week-long house boating trip with family and friends, a trip to Vegas with her mom & sister, a wine tour adventure in BC, a trip to Montreal with her husband’s pipe band, numerous concerts and many family gatherings with her parents, siblings and eight nieces and nephews. She chose to attend Wellspring, a cancer support centre where she did a needle felting course, yoga, Reiki and meditation. She bravely worked hard to make the most of her time and set small achievable goals throughout her diagnosis. Her greatest accomplishment was rallying to have a magical wedding a few short months before passing away in March 2024.

![Jenny Guittard](https://static.alumniq.com/ualberta/prod/crowdfunding/2025/1752079018252.jpg)
 
**Jenny’s Legacy**
 
Being a nurse and an educator was such an important part of Jenny’s identity. She always had a passion for patient focused care and continued to advocate for herself and others throughout her diagnosis. The kindness she demonstrated and the impact she had was felt by many around the world. She expressed a desire to ensure that her legacy continues and wanted to help others achieve their dreams of pursuing a career in nursing. This scholarship will allow future nurses to focus on developing that same knowledge, passion and love for helping others as our beloved Jenny did.

Jenny Guittard Memorial Award

* **This award supports a first-year Nursing student who demonstrates financial need and strong academic standing**
* **Preference will be given to students with an interest in oncology nursing or a career in cancer care or research**
* **The award is renewable for up to four years, provided the recipient maintains satisfactory academic standing and remains enrolled in the Nursing undergraduate program**