Our baby, C, was in the NICU for 105 days, starting in December of last year, and in that time we were incredibly blessed by our nurse Lisa Wallis. I truly believe God put her in our lives for a reason and we are so thankful for her caliber of skills as a nurse and her abundance of empathy and character as a person. We can’t thank Lisa enough for everything spoken, and unspoken, that she did for us. She was a bright light in the fog and helped guide us through the hardest period of our lives thus far.

Lisa was working the week leading up to Christmas and we were lucky enough to have her on the day that we got to hold our tiny baby for the first time. It was already an incredibly hard week. We were surrounded by family at home but grappling with the reality that all of our festivities would be tinged with the bleak recognition that we were missing our newest family member. Similarly, whenever we spent time at the hospital we felt guilty that we were missing precious holiday moments with our 3 and 5-year-old boys at home. The shock from my traumatic Emergency C Section and the illness of our baby was still setting in.

We knew that skin-to-skin was an important part of his healing and I desired closeness to my baby. However, we were terrified to touch, let alone hold, this tiny fleshy human that was covered with bruises from his ‘violent’ birth and left with a fragile broken arm. Enter Lisa. Her excitement for us on the day before this milestone was so pure, hopeful, and contagious that it eventually eased our nerves. I remember quietly asking her when we left that day, “Can you be sure to be the one here tomorrow to help us hold him?” She assured us she would do her best. The next day, she handled the entire handoff with professionalism, expertise, enthusiasm, and an almost reverent sense of joy for what a special occasion it was. We were so calm in her care. I love that Lisa is pictured in all of our photos of her placing my baby on me for the first time. It is truly fitting based on how special she has become to us, but at the time we had no idea that she would become such a huge part of C’s story - and of our NICU experience.

In the beginning, we were always worried we were doing this NICU thing ‘wrong.’ Did we visit enough? Did we visit too much? Did we ask enough questions and, if so, were they the right questions? Did we call to check in as much as other parents? If we did less than others, would the doctors and nurses question the amount of love we had for this child? During one visit, while I was doing skin-to-skin, I remember asking Lisa, ‘How often do most parents visit?’ And I’ll never forget the answer she gave. It was so pure and non-judgmental. “You know, I’ve seen wonderful and loving parents that come every single day, and I’ve seen wonderful and loving parents that can only come every few days… but it doesn’t mean they love their children less.” She probably doesn’t even know how truly comforting and freeing that answer was for me. We were planning to visit every day, but I knew we had months ahead of us and I was finally able to let my guard down and focus less on the optics of what I was doing, and more on just loving and caring for all three of my kids. However much we could visit or do for him, Lisa’s reassurance and encouragement showed us that the nurses had grace and compassion for us and knew how much we loved this baby.

In the days, weeks, and months that followed, we got closer to Lisa. She took such incredible care of baby C, requested him as her primary, and cared for him whenever she could. Having her by his side felt like he was getting the best care - but also the most love. When she would tell us how much she truly cared for him, we knew it wasn’t just some nursing line, that she truly meant it. I can’t say how comforting that was when we couldn’t be there. She went above and beyond in so many other small ways too. When grandparents were no longer allowed in the NICU due to an uptick in Covid, I told Lisa how my Mom would check the baby cam almost hourly because she missed her grandbaby so much. So Lisa started writing personalized notes to my mom and putting them in front of the camera when she was holding and cuddling C. My Mom basically burst with elation the first time she saw one, and she’d screenshot and send them to me every time from there forward. It was such a small thing, but it brought so much joy to our family.

Lisa went out of her way to do the big and small things for each of her patients every day and her tireless commitment to excellent care shows. Her wisdom, humanity, compassion, and fortitude are unparalleled, and she deserves a mountain of thanks and appreciation - she certainly has ours.