Lea Sander, RN

My grandfather had been airlifted from Crosby after an unexpected brain bleed. After arriving at what seemed like the same time as he did, I was informed that I had limited time once they took him off life support. H was then our night nurse, ensuring that my grandfather was comfortable. After shift change, Lea was our nurse. Lea's presence brought immediate comfort to my family and me. She was an angel sent to our room. She went above and beyond caring for my grandpa in his last moments. My grandpa had asked me to cut his hair a few days prior- I regretfully did not; but Lea combed my grandpa's hair and beard. Lea printed out his heart rate for each of us to bring home, made copies of his fingerprint and handprint, and made a clay handprint as well. This brought tears to all of our eyes to see someone who really felt how heartbreaking this day had been. I will never forget Lea and how she treated my grandpa in his last hours. After he took his last breath, Lea even asked if it was okay for her to say goodbye- she even went and said goodbye to my grandpa and held his hand. When I think back on our experience with Lea, I get emotional because of how grateful I am that she was assigned to our room. As my grandfather’s 12 siblings came to visit one by one, Lea was there as an angel to make sure everyone was comfortable. Nominating Lea for a DAISY Award is the least we could do. I would send her flowers every day if we could because of how amazing she treated my grandpa and my family. Lea deserves every DAISY Award in our eyes. As we share our heartbreaking story, Lea is an angel in it for us. I am so grateful that she was there with us on that day.”