MADISON, Wis.— Lawmakers come from all walks of life. Some are business owners, while others are teachers or farmers.
This year, among the new lawmakers sworn into office, are two nurses—one is a Democrat and the other a Republican. Though they are not the first among their profession to serve in the State Assembly, both became lawmakers amid a pandemic.
Sara Rodriguez hasn't always walked the corridors of the Capitol. It used to be the hallways of a hospital as a nurse. Rodriguez's passion for caring for others all began from an experience abroad.
“I was a Peace Corps volunteer after college, and in my Peace Corps experience, I did health education on HIV aids and reproductive health,” State Rep. Sara Rodriguez (D-Brookfield) said.
At the time, many people thought she was already a nurse so when she returned to the United States she decided to become one. Rodriguez earned her master's in nursing and master's in public health from Johns Hopkins University.
Little did she know that would eventually lead to a career in public office.
“I really was disappointed in the Republican-led Legislature when they made people choose between their health and their right to vote, and that's when I decided to throw my hat in the ring and run for office,” Rodriguez said.
Donna Rozar is new to the Capitol too, but the pandemic didn't push her into politics.
“I really had an interest for a long time in running for state office,” State Rep. Donna Rozar (R-Marshfield) said. “I ran in 1994 and here it is 2021 and I am sitting in this office.”
During her nearly 20 years as a supervisor on the Wood County Board, Rozar has had a front-row seat to how what happens in Madison impacts Marshfield, but it's her life's work that still plays the biggest role in how she thinks about the world.
“I loved being a nurse,” Rozar said. “I can just never say to you how much I loved being a nurse.”
Rozar's passion for taking care of others dates back decades. She worked on the cardiac medical-surgical unit at Marshfield Medical Center for 19 years, and just retired from teaching at the UW-Eau Claire College of Nursing where she taught for 12 years.
“I don't think I think like a politician,” Rozar said. "I think like a nurse and maybe it's because I've been a nurse for so long it would be very hard to not think that way.”
From being a bedside ER nurse to working for a health tech company, even serving as an epidemic intelligence officer with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Rodriguez said her lived experiences also shape how she legislates.
“Health care providers don't always run for office, and we provide a unique perspective, a different perspective in how we can take care of the individual patient and how we take care of our community,” Rodriguez said.
Though both Rodriguez and Rozar became lawmakers at the same time amid the COVID-19 pandemic, they have different thoughts about how to deal with it.
“I think the governor has done as much as he can to be able to save Wisconsinites lives, and this is in the face of a very difficult legislative body,” Rodriguez said. “I think we could have done better if we would have had the cooperation of the Legislature in terms of mask-wearing and social distancing, and we could have reduced the numbers of infections and deaths in Wisconsin.”
As a county board supervisor, Rozar has held a variety of leadership roles, including as the Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee currently.
“We did not mandate masks in Wood County," Rozar said. "Leadership agreed that is not the direction we wanted to go. We wanted to educate people. We wanted to use all the tools in the toolbox to mitigate against this disease. I am not opposed to people wearing masks. If they want to wear masks, all power to them. You know, I believe in basic infection control maneuvers, so we educated people about social distancing. If you're sick, confound it, stay home. Don't go out and infect the rest of us.”
During National Nurses Week, which runs May 6-12, both lawmakers had a message to share for their fellow healthcare workers.
Rodriguez wants Wisconsinites to remember the pandemic isn't over.
“Thank you for everything that you have done across this entire year,” Rodriguez said. “I know it has not been easy, and we need to remember that they are still working on the front line of this pandemic.”
Rozar offered a piece of advice she always gave students when she was an instructor.
“People have a tremendous trust in nursing,” Rozar said. “Don't ever take that trust that people have for you for granted.”
Two nurses from two political parties are now both caring for their communities in the only way they know.