My mother-in-law, XXX, fought a long, hard battle with stage 4 melanoma. She did every treatment, every procedure with grace and took everything in stride as it came. She did not ONCE complain about anything and always had the best attitude even when she was feeling anything but okay. She began declining quickly and once she was moved to the ICU.

Hailey was her nurse and went above and beyond her job duties/title. She constantly was speaking to XXX even when XXX couldn't respond anymore. She never stopped telling her what she was doing. At one-point XXX began seeming very uncomfortable and seemed like something was in her eye that was bothering her. It took a little bit, but Hailey didn't stop trying to figure out what was wrong, and then she saw that there was an eyelash in XXX's eye. She got a warm washcloth and was able to wipe the eyelash out of her eye, and you could instantly see the relief in XXX's face. Hailey also gave my father-in-law, XXX, a hug that evening in her room, and he immediately broke down crying. The care she gave XXX was next level, but the care she also showed to XXX was above and beyond.

Hailey was extraordinary and her kindness was exceptional. The day that XXX passed, Hailey wasn't her nurse, but still came and gave XXX a hug after XXX passed and told her how incredibly sorry she was for his loss. She never pulled back from the hug first. She also called XXX "Sweet Pea" many times, and it warmed XXX's heart. J was XXX's nurse when she passed. The care that J showed XXX was above and beyond what her job was. She was kind, gentle, sweet, and loving towards XXX. She made sure we (her whole family) were also taken care of and brought us anything we needed and was the kindest soul to us. In the moments leading up to XXX's passing, J cleaned XXX's face, made sure her mouth wasn't too dry, made sure her oxygen was at the perfect rate, made sure her pain meds were perfectly balanced so she wasn't suffering at all, she even put ChapStick on her right before she passed because she told us her lips looked dry and she wanted her to be comfortable. Watching J with my mother-in-law literally brought tears to my eyes. She put her face next to hers and talked softly and quietly to her, gently stroking her hair back, telling her that her whole family was here, telling her how loved she was, telling her she was safe, and she told XXX everything she was doing, even though XXX couldn't respond anymore. J is an incredible human who provided an amazing woman with the most comfortable care possible during the worst time our family has ever experienced. Knowing that XXX was able to pass in the arms of her family, while also receiving the most amazing medical care I have ever seen, was a blessing I can't even begin to put into words. We are so grateful for these two women who provided XXX with the most amazing care, as well as everyone at Kootenai who had a hand in helping our sweet XXX.