Mafalda was an incredible nurse to our twin boys. They were born prematurely at 27 weeks and were brought straight into the NICU after birth. My husband and I were beyond scared and distraught when the boys started their NICU journey. Mafalda was the boys' nurse one day, and we immediately could tell she was extremely talented as a NICU nurse.

One of the best decisions we made in the NICU was to ask her to be one of our primary nurses. We are so lucky she agreed to be our boys' primary. Each day she was their nurse, we felt so much more confident and secure that the boys were being well cared for. Mafalda was with us on some of our most intense days. She was always calm, professional, careful, and caring. She would explain what she was doing with the boys in a way we could understand, giving us hope and strength each day.

She would always keep us in the loop on all aspects of their care and share milestones to look forward to. More importantly, she had an innate sense of what the boys needed. She was the first person to figure out that one of the boys had reflux, which was causing heart rate dips. She advocated for him to get medicine that greatly improved his reflux.

Having our babies in the NICU is easily the hardest thing we have been through, and knowing each day they were with Mafalda, they were safe, cared for, and loved meant the world to us. I remember one day Mafalda had to give Owen a shot, and when he cried, she was genuinely upset and did everything she could to comfort him. My husband and I will never forget Mafalda and the incredible care she gave to our babies during their time of need. I hope the boys get to meet Mafalda one day out of the NICU and say thank you.

We cannot thank you enough, Mafalda!