I think I have mentioned before how incredibly fortunate we are that we have Children’s Hospital CO so close. I’ll mention again that the nurses that cared for Luke (and I) are absolute angels. Complete gifts. (minus a few of course). Most of which have had to have a quick sense of humor dealing with me and my shenanigans. I have had some experience raising my two boys with occasional broken bones, stitches, sprains, more stitches, full Tommy John surgery (quadruple ugh there) and have met many many nurses all around that are exceptional. They are an elite group of professionals with a huge passion for their work. Gigantic hearts and smart cookies.

https://www.daisyfoundation.org/about-daisy-award

Sometime last May I formally nominated one of Luke’s nurses for The Daisy Award. There are MANY nurses that went above and beyond and continue to as we go in for weekly visits. I could write a chapter about so many of them! I could have easily nominated SO MANY. But this one is for Jen. I won’t go into the private and painful details of the times when Jen figured out a complicated puzzles involving Luke’s journey. She is an amazing critical thinker and never gave up. The Daisy award is a prestigious international award for nurses. To be honest, I had forgotten about it, considering how long ago it has been since writing her nomination. Last week I received an email from the Daisy award coordinator/Professional Development Department at Children’s Hospital CO. They informed me that Jen had indeed won the Daisy Award and asked if I would be willing to be a part of the surprise ceremony and read her nomination. Luke and I had to keep it a secret for a week but today we joined (via zoom) and got to be a part of it. Cue the tears of joy. A total of 5 nurses received the award today. The stories of the other 4 nurses and the families involved were incredible. HELLZZZZ YAH! What a gift for Luke and I to be a part of it! AND, Jen had ZERO clue what was happening today until she walked into the room where the ceremony was held. 

JEN!

Thanks for being you Jen!

Buckets of excitement for you!

Suz and Luke (Ricardo has left the building, for now)

“Nurses every day go above and beyond to not only provide patients and families with excellence in clinical care but also compassion. At The DAISY Foundation, we aim to honor them by showing our profound gratitude for all that they do.”