From the 'seeds of caring' to a 46-year career at Beaufort Memorial, Karen Carroll leaves a legacy of leadership and lifelong learning
As 2026 begins, Beaufort Memorial Chief Nursing Officer Karen Carroll, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, is stepping into a new chapter. After 46 years of dedicated service, she is trading her role as CNO for new titles — including “retiree” and “full-time grandma.”
From her first days as a 21-year-old nurse in the 1970s to leading critical care and serving as Vice President of Patient Care Services, Karen’s journey has helped shape Beaufort Memorial, and she leaves behind a legacy rooted in compassion and care.
‘Seed of Caring’
When Karen thinks back on her early dreams, she laughs at how wide-ranging they once were.
At age 10, she imagined herself as a nun in South America, caring for people and specializing in braiding hair.
By 16, she was convinced that she would become either a model or an airline stewardess. But her mother Yvonne, a nurse herself, gently suggested a different direction:
“I think you should go to nursing school.”
After growing up in southern West Virginia, Karen moved with her family during her teenage years to Beaufort in 1973. She spent her high school years working at the Burger King on Ribaut Road, unsure of her future.
“In that totally misguided 10-year-old mind was the seed of caring,” she said. “It was wanting to take care of people, wanting to make a difference for them.”
With her mother’s encouragement, Karen pursued college and nursing school, beginning what would become a remarkable 46-year journey at Beaufort Memorial – one that has shaped not only her own life, but the life of the entire community.
Nursing Through the Years
Nursing in 2025 bears little resemblance to the field Karen entered in 1979 as a young nurse.
“They give nurses 12 weeks of orientation now,” she said with a smile. “I think I had one day, and the next day I was out on the floor.”
Her first shift at Beaufort Memorial remains unforgettable, she said.
“My prayer that morning was, ‘Lord, please let me do OK. Don’t let me hurt anybody, don’t let anybody die, and please let me be able to take care of these patients.’”
Over the years, technology has revolutionized the nursing profession.
“Back then, nursing relied heavily on a sharp mind, a strong memory and a deep understanding of protocols," she reflected. "Today, nurses are supported by technology that puts vital information at their fingertips, elevating the care we provide.”
Beaufort Memorial has transformed right alongside the nursing profession. What once was a small facility on the banks of the Beaufort River is now the largest health system between Savannah and Charleston.
“That growth is the biggest change,” Karen said, “but Beaufort Memorial has always felt like a community hospital – and it still does.”
Rising Through the Ranks
Throughout her decades-long career, Karen served as a staff nurse, med-surg nurse, critical care nurse, charge nurse and eventually director of critical care.
“I really loved being a director; it was the best of both worlds,” Karen said. “I was a leader, but I also really loved the patient care aspect of it. There’s no better feeling than taking direct care of a patient. In that role, I could do a little bit of both, and that was beautiful.”
Guided by the belief that “if you want it, you can do it,” she continued her education, earning her master’s degree in 1994. A few years later, she was asked to consider the role of Beaufort Memorial Chief Nursing Officer.
“I had a lot of trepidation. I loved critical care and I didn’t feel prepared,” she said. But she accepted the role in July 2000. Not one to slow down, Karen completed her doctorate in nurse leadership in 2014.
In addition to her own accomplishments, Karen championed the professional growth of the nurses she led, inspiring many to pursue advanced degrees and even become nurse practitioners.
“I have always felt like I should be the best leader I can be,” she said. “To know that I’ve made a difference – it feels good.”
In 2021, amid the workforce challenges heightened by the COVID-19 pandemic, Karen played a pivotal role in launching the PATH program (People Achieving Their Highest), which opened new doors for aspiring nurses and medical professionals, helping remove barriers that often stand in the way of joining the profession.
Her leadership also brought recognition to the organization as well – Beaufort Memorial became South Carolina’s first Pathway to Excellence hospital in 2011, and in 2022, the Leapfrog Group named it a Top 5% General Hospital for patient outcomes.
A Family Legacy
Nursing is in Karen’s blood, and it’s a passion she also passed along to her daughters. Both of Karen’s daughters, Lauren and Stephanie, work in medical fields – Stephanie is a pharmacist at Beaufort Memorial, while Lauren, formerly an ER nurse at Beaufort Memorial, now works as a family nurse practitioner in Greenville.
It all started, though, with Yvonne Manuel, Karen’s mother. She was the only nurse in her family, guiding her daughter to tend to the seed of caring that was already rooted within her.
Yvonne and Karen enrolled together in the associate degree program at Armstrong State College in Savannah, and both nurses went on to achieve Bachelor of Science degrees in nursing at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC).
Karen’s connection to Beaufort Memorial runs deeper than just a job. It’s not only where she built her career, but where many of her life’s significant moments unfolded. She spent years there working beside her mother, and when she became CNO, she found herself guiding the very person who once guided her.
Her two daughters were born at the hospital, and her father’s final days were spent within its walls.
“This hospital is woven into the fabric of this community and the fabric of my own life,” she said. “I believe it always will be, and that the community will always want this hospital to be successful and something special.”
That’s what a community hospital is – friendly faces, care administered with kindness, and skilled nurses and staff committed to “doing the right thing, because it’s the right thing for the community.”
Beaufort Memorial's New Chapter
In recent months, Karen has mentored four emerging nursing leaders whose initiatives – like purposeful rounding – are already improving patient satisfaction.
Her advice to the next CNO is simple and wise: “Seek first to understand. Keep a positive attitude. See the big picture. Stay open-minded, persevere, and be resilient. If you do what’s best for the organization and for nursing, you’ll be successful.”
Retirement Calls
After 46 years of dedication to the community organization she helped shape, Karen is ready for what’s next. Her husband, Lowell, has been retired for several years, and she’s ready to join him.
With six grandchildren and a seventh on the way, she’s looking forward to days filled with family.
Her plans for retirement include volunteering at St. Peter Catholic Church, catching up on house projects, reading more, walking more and traveling – starting with a trip to Paris in April. She also hopes to learn piano purely for the joy of it.
“I am just looking forward to growing in every way, physically, mentally and spiritually,” she said, “At every level, I feel like this is an opportunity to grow, give back, sum up the life I’ve had, and do something good for someone else, for my family, and enjoy the time that I have.”
The End of an Era
Her legacy is unmistakable. As Beaufort Memorial President and CEO Russell Baxley shared, “Karen’s 46 years of dedicated service have shaped Beaufort Memorial’s identity and strengthened its legacy across our community and state. Our next CNO will have very big shoes to fill – her leadership and presence will be deeply missed by all of us.”
From Karen’s beginnings as a young staff nurse to leading the entire Beaufort Memorial nursing team, she has influenced the hospital’s evolution and supported generations of nurses, remaining grounded in the community that shaped her.
As she steps into her next chapter, Karen is embracing retirement as an opportunity to grow in new ways. And while she has closed the book on her role at Beaufort Memorial, the spirit she brought to the organization – steady, compassionate and community-minded – will continue to inspire for years to come.
Ready to take the next step in your nursing career? Explore opportunities at Beaufort Memorial.