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Ludwicki said Hagans seemed to always know whom to call or where to find the answer when there were questions about scope of practice or safety issues on the unit. As a charge nurse, Ludwicki said Hagans always stayed professional when there were conflicts on the floor and encouraged her nurses to stay focused on the patient. "She always tried to maintain fairness and balance things out among the nurses and staff," said Ludwicki. Seth Dressekie, RN and a board member of NYSNA, has known Hagans since 1982 when they both were students at The State Uni- versity of New York College at Old Westbury, where Hagans was involved in student government. "She is a natural leader, and I am a soldier, so I don't take that term easy. A leader is someone who cares about the people they are in charge of. With her, you are going to follow someone whom you know has your best interest at heart." Dressekie called Hagans a straight shooter, someone who is will- ing to argue her point and willing to listen to a counterpoint. But perhaps most importantly, he said, if the group elects to go in a way she doesn't support initially, she quickly puts aside her differences, and buckles down to do the work. "Her ego is not fragile," said Dressekie. "If we disagree, it doesn't mean you are a bad person, it's just we disagree and we are fine. It is just, 'Let's get it done, let's keep it moving.'" Both Ludwicki and Dressekie agreed that Hagans had a proven track record when she moved into her role as the president of NYSNA last year. "She has earned my unconditional support," said Dressekie. "She has never, ever waivered from being honest, straightforward, empa- thetic, and intelligent. She is definitely ahead of everyone else. It's like she is playing chess while everyone else is playing checkers." * * * * * H agans' ability to stay ahead of the game has allowed her to be a hands-on mother, sister, auntie, and wife even while doing her union activities and maintaining her day job at Maimo- nides. "My mom is the heart and soul of our family," said Geneva "Gigi" Hagans, a 19-year-old health science major at Northeastern College in Boston who aspires to become an orthopedic surgeon. Recalling her childhood, she said her mother not only drove her to school but also served as a room parent and she and Gigi's father, Paul Hagans, coached the school's basketball teams. While Paul had played basketball in college, Hagans didn't know much about the sport, so she did what she always did: She reached for the playbook and read it through. "We won the championships for three years straight," beamed Gigi. Sydney, Hagans' 17-year-old daughter, fondly remembers being a cheerleader for one of those victory games. She said her family was always close. They would spend the weekends enjoying their mother's wonderful cooking, going to the movies, or huddled around a table playing games. And always spending Sunday morning at church. Gigi said her parents loved to dance, even when it was just the two of them in their living room enjoying their favorite Haitian kompa artists, Zin and Sweet Mickey. According to Ludwicki, Paul and Hagans shared a great love. "They were very, very happy." Then in 2017, Paul was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He died shortly thereafter, leaving Hagans a single mother with two young daughters. "It was difficult for us and difficult for her to be a widow," recalled Gigi. But she added, "She never let us worry. Whatever it was, she always said, 'I am going to find a way to take care of it.'" Sydney says even now, with all her mother's duties as president of NYSNA, her mother always makes time for the family. "She always makes the effort and that is what I value about my mom the most." But Gigi warned that her mother draws the line when it comes to attending Boston sports events, as that would be disloyal to her beloved New York Knicks. As loving a mother as she is, both girls agree she expects nothing but the best when it comes to the girls' school work. "My dad would say as long as you did your best," recalled Gigi. "My mom was like 'No way, this is not your best. I know your best is better than this.'" Hagans concedes she has high expectations, but explained that while she was growing up, her parents made their children's educa- tion the highest priority. She said her parents demanded that their children excel in school. "If someone was going to get a 100 in the class, it had to be you," said Hagans. There were times attending school in the United States that Hagans said teachers would underestimate her or her siblings and push them towards less lofty goals because they were Haitian and immigrants. "My family always says what you have here in your brain, nobody can ever take that away from you," recalled Hagans, sharing her mother's lesson. "When you walk into a room, people will look at you a certain way because of how you sound or how you look and you can't change that, okay, but you can change what you make of your life." Both girls credit their mother with instilling in them an inner strength and the sense that nothing is impossible. "She always taught me to stand up for what I believe in," said Sydney. She said her mother told her many times, "If someone doesn't agree with you, that is okay. Just follow your own heart and don't worry about what others think about you. No one can define you the way you can define yourself." * * * * * T hose who know and work beside Hagans say they are not sur- prised that she has risen to the top of NYSNA. Pat Kane, RN is the executive director of NYSNA, and has known Hagans for more than 20 years. 16 N A T I O N A L N U R S E W W W . N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G J A N U A R Y | F E B R U A R Y | M A R C H 2 0 2 3 "My family always says what you have here in your brain, nobody can ever take that away from you. When you walk into a room, people will look at you a certain way because of how you sound or how you look and you can't change that, okay, but you can change what you make of your life."