I first met Suzanne when I started providing pregnancy and infant loss care boxes to her in 2018. Our very first time meeting in person, Suzanne brought me into a room she named 'The Butterfly Room.' This was an empty patient room she had transformed into a beautiful purple bereavement room decorated with butterflies. This room is used for parents of loss to come into and make special memories and mementos of their baby. She has books about loss for parents and siblings. There are items to make numerous different mementos like hand and foot molds, personalized wooden memory boxes, and scrapbook pages to name a few. Suzanne also helped facilitate a project for people to donate wedding dresses to be made into angel burial gowns. She realized the importance of having a dignified way for a baby's body to be taken from the parents and bought boxes for this specific situation. Suzanne is planning a remembrance event for bereaved parents in the Waterloo community to have a special event to honor and remember their baby. She is pursuing a standard practice for providers to follow when caring for women suffering a miscarriage. I could go on with all of the things she has thought of and gone forward with doing for parents going through pregnancy and infant loss.
As a loss mom myself, I was honestly brought to tears to see the compassion and thoughtfulness Suzanne has for loss families. For her to be so empathetic and considerate in having the special things available to make the short but precious time parents have with their babies who have passed amazes me. Every time we talk, she has something she is working on to provide even more for bereaved families. Suzanne has a huge heart and I believe she is a true DAISY Nurse for all she has done and continues to do to show love and support for patients facing pregnancy and infant loss.