Virginia Highlands Community College 2026 Commencement Program

Commencement Speakers (continued)

Billy Ray Heath Associate of Applied Science, Nursing

Billy Ray Heath lives on a farm in Chilhowie, VA, with his dog, a pit mix named K’Cee; his cat, Moose; and his brother. He was a dual-enrollment student at Holston High School and joined the Army Reserve. While stationed in Texas and in Germany, he was able to chip away at his prerequisites for nursing school, and once home, he officially started his nursing classes full-time at VHCC. Billy Ray credits his father, who is a VHCC alumnus, as a major inspiration for deciding to become a nurse. Recalling one of his earliest memories of being on campus, “I started classes in high school, coming here for orientation when I was 16 or something. I have a picture here with some of my buddies that I worked with at Burger King, that I'm still best friends with today.” He continues, “...it's just always kind of been where I was going to start, as a footstone.” Outside of school, Billy Ray loves to play video games, spend time with friends, read novels, and draw. One of his favorite memories at VHCC was taking Anatomy with Professor Whitney

Peters. He remembers how, when he entered the cadaver lab, Professor Peters would play one of his favorite Spotify playlists. In those moments, he was able to shut out the external world, collect his thoughts, and reset from the pressures of daily life. One thing that Billy Ray says he appreciated about the staff and faculty at VHCC is, “There's always support, right there, you know? There's always something to show you that it's going to be okay.” The advice he would give to his fellow graduates is, “This was the hard part. We now have experience in our field and have the foundation in place to build a beautiful future.” Billy Ray currently works at Bristol Regional Medical Center (BRMC) as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), and after graduation will continue his career at BRMC working in Neuro/Med surg before transferring to the ICU or ER. Billy Ray eventually plans to earn his BSN and become a CRNA.

20