When my daughter was diagnosed with AML in June, our world was turned upside down in the matter of hours. Anxiety, tears, shock, and heartache took over. I honestly didn't know how we were going to get through an estimated six to eight months of basically living in-patient at Children's Hospital as she received aggressive chemotherapy treatment. Then one night early on, our night nurse, Kristen Knarr, walked into our room, instantly bonded with my child and from then on, everything seemed brighter for all of us.

Kristen's cheerful, relaxed personality and loving smile put us all instantly at ease. Not only is she personable, patient, and knowledgeable, but she exudes enthusiasm about her profession and genuinely, whole-heartedly cares about the health and well-being of her patients and their families. Kristen is tenacious and intuitive when she senses something might be wrong, or seems off with my daughter, she thoroughly examines her and will do everything in her power to assure that she's okay. We don't have Kristen as our nurse every night, but she always makes it a priority to come in to check on us, often being the only person all day that can cheer her up, put a smile on her face, or manage to coax her out of the bed. The terrible chemo side effects, mood swings and irritability, combined with the behavior of a typical 2 year-old can sometimes make my daughter a difficult patient for some nurses, but not Kristen. She never gets frustrated or inpatient with her, regardless of how she's behaving, and as parents, there's nothing more comforting than watching someone else love your child unconditionally, like she's her own.

One late night in our third month of treatment, when my daughter was feeling particularly bad and refused to fall asleep, she wanted me and Kristen both by her bed. We said her prayers, tried to get her to sleep, and then she randomly asked us with sincerity and innocence, "What happened to my hair, Why am I sick?" She had lost her hair months ago and never asked about it, or why she sick, or in the hospital. Her little questions broke my heart. Thankfully, it was dark in the room, so she couldn't see the tears streaming down my face or the muffled sobs. Kristen, holding back tears of her own, did her best to answer my daughter's questions, knowing I couldn't handle those answers in that moment. That night, like many others during her treatment, was emotional and heart wrenching.

We will always be tremendously grateful for Kristen Knarr. Her strength when we were weak, sincere devotion to her profession / patients, and the genuine, unyielding compassion shown to our daughter and our family as we faced such a difficult time will never be forgotten.