![EXCEPTIONAL CAREER: Marian Aliendi has retired after more than 48 years of nursing at both the Leeton hospital and Carramar. Photo: Talia Pattison EXCEPTIONAL CAREER: Marian Aliendi has retired after more than 48 years of nursing at both the Leeton hospital and Carramar. Photo: Talia Pattison](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/cMJhfEv9TADJPBxPT74Wz7/e30bc008-993f-4ddb-97c2-f5f32ad7e8e4.JPG/r0_556_4032_3029_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
GROWING up, Leeton's Marian Aliendi imagined she would be a hairdresser - never in a million years did she think she would go on to become a nurse for close to five decades.
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Last week that extraordinary nursing career came to a close when Mrs Aliendi finished her final shift to officially retire.
She explained it was now time to explore life outside of work, travel and spend time with family and friends.
Mrs Aliendi's career of more than 48 years has been spent in its entirety at the Leeton hospital and, in later years, at the Carramar aged care facility.
Close to five decades of clocking in and out under the same roof, while caring for patients, helping welcome new life into the world and being a friendly face for people in their time of need.
Mrs Aliendi said she always wanted to be a hairdresser, but her older sister had started nursing and she decided maybe that was a career worth giving a shot.
"I put in a written application with the hospital, next moment I get this phone call saying 'Marian, you're starting today'," she said.
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"There was no interview. So I basically started then and there and began my study and training.
"All of the training was done here. I started in the hospital, back in those days you worked on the children's ward, maternity, acute care, we had long-stay male, long-stay female, a surgical ward. You rotated around on all the floors."
She later decided to go into aged care at Carramar, which she said was both rewarding and hard work as the residents become more like family, rather than patients.
"The best part of the job for me has always been caring for people, especially seeing people get better," Mrs Aliendi said.
"Sometimes it is sad, you do see end-of-life, so that's the hardest part. You never get used to it."
With close to 50 years of experience, Mrs Aliendi has seen and experienced plenty within the walls of the hospital and Carramar.
Much has changed when it comes to nursing, particularly when it comes to equipment and technology, but what never waivered over that time was her ability to properly care for all of her patients.
The staff Mrs Aliendi has worked with over the years have also become more than just work colleagues and that is another element of the job she will miss.
While ready to head off into retirement and a well-deserved holiday, Mrs Aliendi promised she would still be a regular face at Carramar.
"I might do some volunteer work, so I will be around," she said. "I'll miss everyone here, but I just felt as though the time was right. It's definitely a career I do recommend to young people."
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