From the moment we walked through the doors into the labor and delivery department, S and I felt welcomed and comforted by Casey. Casey may or may not have known that by 10 am, when we came into the hospital that morning, we were already 6 hours into a very stressful day of uncertainty and worry. She greeted us with a smile and quickly had us comfortable and set up in a triage room. As she read through the routine intake questions, she was attentive and focused. Asking additional questions of her own and considering input not just from S but from myself as well. In talking to Casey, it was immediately clear how passionate she is about her career and her love of what she does. We expressed our concerns to her about being heard that day, about not wanting to be sent home prematurely, and wanting to make sure that someone other than ourselves would advocate for us, and most importantly, keep S and our baby boy safe. When she left the room for the first time, S and I looked at each other, and we both agreed that coming in was a good idea, and we felt like we were in good hands. Casey took the information we gave her to the provider on call just as we had asked, and was likely met with the same resistance that we met when the provider visited us. We felt safe and reassured having Casey in our corner. After a few tests, we were admitted later that day. Casey continued to impress us throughout the day with her skills, competence, and bedside manner until the end of her shift. She is a natural leader in this department. Her colleagues come to her for answers, some of them openly admitting that they had been trained by her. She was actively training another nurse during our stay, and it was evident by watching the interaction between her and her trainee that everything I had seen so far from her that day was her true character. She was sad to be leaving us at 7 pm, but reassured us that she would be back the next day. Sadly, 12 hours later, there was still no baby, but we were very pleased to have her back with us. Throughout the day, as I'm sure is common in the delivery of babies, there were many changes of plans, adjustments to treatment, and moments of uncertainty. Casey was there to explain each one of them. She helped us communicate with the doctors and understand what was going on, and most importantly, she listened to what we were saying. Seeing her in her environment, you can tell she is a master of her craft. She has a few tips and tricks that she does to not only make her shift easier and her patients' care better, but to help facilitate a smooth transfer at shift change. As a patient or loved one of a patient, one of the most unsettling things is to have to say goodbye to the person that you've grown comfortable with over the last 12 hours and hope that the next person will be just as good. Casey made it clear to the incoming staff the standard of care she had established for us during her shift, and we felt like the staff replacing her were well-informed. We said goodbye to Casey for the last time at shift change, and 3 hours and 16 minutes later, our beautiful baby boy was delivered. We wish that after being with us for nearly 2 entire shifts that she could have been there for the finale, but that's just how it goes sometimes. If my wife and I ever find ourselves in the waiting room of a labor and delivery department, wondering what will be happening next, I hope that it's Casey's face we see when the door opens up.