During my two sons' stay in the Neonatal ICU, all the nurses were excellent, but they changed all the time. Vickie was the first repeat nurse I had, and she became the night nurse for my boys. Even though she was the nurse in the middle of the night, she had the biggest impact on me during this hard time.

I was thrilled to have twin boys, but I was also scared. I had always had a stable life but found myself pregnant with twins, without income, and staying at a shelter. I was so scared to have the twins and didn't know how I would do it.

Every night that Vickie worked, we had the best conversations. I also had a lot of fear during my pregnancy and even after delivery, because a year and a half earlier, I had lost a daughter at 22 weeks. Every night Vickie was patient, so helpful and caring, and really looked out for me and the boys. She was so honest, which was what I needed.

She was also inspiring. She had adopted a NICU baby 12 years ago - a baby that everyone else had given up on. Her story of her life with her daughter with severe special needs was inspiring. While all the nurses were amazing at Mission, Vickie is someone I will never forget.