11/19/2025
Carol Kave graduated from the Westmoreland Hospital School of Nursing in 1967. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree and a Master’s degree from Penn State University, and she continually expanded her expertise through numerous certifications that underscored her dedication as an educator, mentor, and nurse.
She devoted forty-one years to Independence Health System Westmoreland Hospital, serving in various capacities. She began on the medical-surgical units as a staff nurse and advanced to medical-surgical relief head nurse. She founded and led the IV therapy team and served as a director of occupational medicine. Carol trained physicians and employees in CPR, educated new nursing staff, and provided ongoing continuing education for colleagues who worked alongside her.
Beyond her professional achievements, Carol was deeply active in the community. She was a member of the New Neighbors of Greensburg, where she regularly attended luncheons with friends she had made. She established Workers’ Compensation panels for companies in Westmoreland County and served as a docent at the Westmoreland Museum of Art. She was a dedicated member of the Hospital Auxiliary, participating in fundraising events, and sat on the board of the Westmoreland County American Heart Association. Carol also belonged to the Westmoreland Area Nurses Association.
Carol’s immediate family was small, but her connections with fellow nurses, physicians, educators, and peers were wide and meaningful. Her friend Darlene spoke of her with admiration: “She was stylish, put together, and very educated, professional, and an excellent nurse and mentor.” Carol could always be counted on to help with a project or event. Another nurse, Melanie, recalled relying on Carol’s intravenous skills on the dialysis unit—she remembered Carol as never flustered or impatient, always willing to assist with grace and quiet dignity.
Albert, Carol’s husband of twenty-six years, recalled her love of travel, whether to Europe or across the United States. Two treasured adventures were a 1998 trip to Italy and a voyage down the Columbia River. He notes that Carol offered advice only when asked and always knew how to speak with gentleness and discernment, never overstepping.
Carol was a nurse, an educator, a mentor, and a doer. To those entrusted with carrying on her memory, may you remember her compassion, her kindness, and her steadfast devotion to caring for others.
