My daughter-in-law, D, lost her 18-week pregnancy due to a placental abruption. She had been losing massive amounts of blood for weeks before she went into early labor. She suffered through two brutal days of hard labor and two blood transfusions before finally agreeing to accelerate her labor to save her life. She was basically bleeding to death but was holding on for a miracle.

Jerusa was an angel sent straight from heaven for all of us. D had a mother, a stepmother, and her mother-in-law in the room with her, but Jerusa got her through. She was a staunch advocate for D, clearing the room when she needed peace and quiet, and insisting that no one try to bully her into making decisions she wouldn't be able to live with. She delivered the most gut-wrenching of updates when we needed them, answered all of our questions with honesty and compassion, and cried with us when we lost our beautiful baby. I am normally the one who holds everything together for my family and looks out for my kids, but I was a mess that day and I don't know how I would have gotten my kids through that without Jerusa. As I told her before I left the hospital, she is exactly where God needed her to be on this earth.