Sam is not only hardworking and professional, but she is a warm-spirited, passionate, and loving nurse who accepts each patient's care as her own personal challenge.

My husband had open-heart surgery. Following the surgery, he was sent to the Cardiovascular ICU to recover. Sam was the nurse who first worked with him. She jumped into action, immediately taking care of his medical needs and also comforting him as he began what turned out to be a very challenging journey of recovery.

For the next few days, she explained to me and my family members everything that was going on with him. She told us each medicine that was being administered, why different procedures were being used, and what to expect during his recovery.

Unfortunately, he had some major setbacks during his stay in CVI. His kidneys shut down, and he was put on a ventilator, where he remained for over a week. Things were looking very grim, but we never gave up hope, and neither did Sam. The entire CVI staff rallied around him for the next four weeks, and Sam was scheduled to care for him several times. Even when she was not his primary care nurse, she would come by to see him and check on his progress.

Sam also continued to comfort me and my family, not giving us false hope, but helping us realize that he was getting the best care possible. As we waited for him to get strong enough to breathe on his own, Sam encouraged us to stay prayerful and hopeful.

Since my husband was on 24-hour dialysis as well as a ventilator, I was asked to wait in the Critical Care Family Lounge and only step into his room for a few minutes at a time throughout the day. My most precious memory of Sam was on the day he first opened his eyes and started breathing on his own. Sam came running down to the Family Lounge and said to me, “Come, come quickly! I need you to see something!” We all cried together as he began to wake up.

Sam seemed to accept my husband's recovery as her own personal challenge. She sincerely wanted to see him get better, cheering him on as he struggled with physical therapy, speech, lack of appetite, among many other things.

On the day he was to be transported to the rehabilitation facility, Sam was not scheduled to work. However, she gave up her own personal time to come by and say goodbye and good luck to him. Sam still checks on him to see how he is progressing, sending words of praise and encouragement to him.

She has played such a major role in my husband's recovery, and my family and I will be eternally grateful to her for the love and kindness she has shown to all of us.