Mary G.
Hershberger
December 2025
Mary G.
Hershberger
,
RN
Pediatric ICU
Mayo Clinic Rochester
Rochester
,
MN
United States
She is an incredibly loving, compassionate, strong, and fierce advocate who fights along with her parents for the best of their kids.
My son lived most of his life in the hospital, and over 6 months of it in the PICU. Mary took care of my son so many times. There were many amazing nurses who cared for him throughout his life, but Mary stood out by far.
Mary treated our son with so much love and compassion it brought tears to my eyes I would have to hold back. Her capacity for empathy is moving. I knew when she was caring for him, he was getting just as good of care or better than he would receive from us, his parents.
She also cared for us as parents in such an incredible and compassionate way. She always made sure we were drinking water, had snacks, and that our other children had fun things to do. She never hesitated to ask us as soon as we walked in the room if we wanted to hold our son, and make sure that other cares were out of the way or on hold so we could have that precious time with him. That is a gift I won't forget.
She was never too busy to ask how we were doing and give us a safe place to talk and vent. She was the first to celebrate our son's victories, cheer him with his first bites of food, celebrate his good days, and encourage us.
She loved our other children and helped us decorate our son's room. We shared lots of laughs, tears, and worries together in that room. I will forever be grateful that I wasn't alone in those times, and I have good memories with him, and Mary was often a part of them.
She could make us laugh in hard situations, and just always seemed to be so genuine and know what we all needed in whatever moment we were in. I won't ever forget the last week of his life. Those last days were so incredibly hard. Mary was one of his main nurses. She made sure he was cared for so gently. She held him, played with him, encouraged our other children to spend time with him, and helped with his care.
She showed them that death was not scary, and she gave them space and didn't get stressed out, even with how busy our room was with so many kids. She never gave up on our son. She wasn't afraid to show her emotions, and as parents, we really needed to know that his life mattered to more than just us. I won't forget that his life mattered to her. He wasn't just another patient.
Mary was more than his nurse. Mary loved our son, and it was so obvious. I think of her as part of his family. She supported him throughout his life, looked out for his whole family, and loved him even in his last days.
It is rare to find an experienced caregiver who is professional, and also human and genuinely caring. Mary is all of that and more. I'm sure there are so many examples and stories of this about Mary.
She made us feel like our family was special to her, but I know she makes every family and child feel that way, because that is just who she is. She is an incredibly loving, compassionate, strong, and fierce advocate who fights along with her parents for the best of their kids. She sees her patients as human beings worthy of respect, regardless of their abilities or circumstances, and I know our son loved her, too.
Mary treated our son with so much love and compassion it brought tears to my eyes I would have to hold back. Her capacity for empathy is moving. I knew when she was caring for him, he was getting just as good of care or better than he would receive from us, his parents.
She also cared for us as parents in such an incredible and compassionate way. She always made sure we were drinking water, had snacks, and that our other children had fun things to do. She never hesitated to ask us as soon as we walked in the room if we wanted to hold our son, and make sure that other cares were out of the way or on hold so we could have that precious time with him. That is a gift I won't forget.
She was never too busy to ask how we were doing and give us a safe place to talk and vent. She was the first to celebrate our son's victories, cheer him with his first bites of food, celebrate his good days, and encourage us.
She loved our other children and helped us decorate our son's room. We shared lots of laughs, tears, and worries together in that room. I will forever be grateful that I wasn't alone in those times, and I have good memories with him, and Mary was often a part of them.
She could make us laugh in hard situations, and just always seemed to be so genuine and know what we all needed in whatever moment we were in. I won't ever forget the last week of his life. Those last days were so incredibly hard. Mary was one of his main nurses. She made sure he was cared for so gently. She held him, played with him, encouraged our other children to spend time with him, and helped with his care.
She showed them that death was not scary, and she gave them space and didn't get stressed out, even with how busy our room was with so many kids. She never gave up on our son. She wasn't afraid to show her emotions, and as parents, we really needed to know that his life mattered to more than just us. I won't forget that his life mattered to her. He wasn't just another patient.
Mary was more than his nurse. Mary loved our son, and it was so obvious. I think of her as part of his family. She supported him throughout his life, looked out for his whole family, and loved him even in his last days.
It is rare to find an experienced caregiver who is professional, and also human and genuinely caring. Mary is all of that and more. I'm sure there are so many examples and stories of this about Mary.
She made us feel like our family was special to her, but I know she makes every family and child feel that way, because that is just who she is. She is an incredibly loving, compassionate, strong, and fierce advocate who fights along with her parents for the best of their kids. She sees her patients as human beings worthy of respect, regardless of their abilities or circumstances, and I know our son loved her, too.