Pat goes over and above the call of duty each and every day. However, I'd like to cite one particular case where her caring, compassion, and professionalism touched a family in crisis.

WJ was a young man of twenty-one with terminal cancer. He was a college basketball player with a quick wit and an infectious smile. One afternoon, while receiving treatment, WJ took a turn for the worse. After many months of treatment, WG decided that he had had enough. He wanted to "go home". By this he meant no more treatment; he was ready to go home to die.

Pat quickly sprung into action. First, she phoned the patient's mother who was travelling for business and offered her emotional support as she attempted to get home to her son. Then she arranged for an ambulance to take WJ home. His brother would ride with him while his father followed behind in the car. Pat, with her Emergency Department background, knew that riding in his father's car was not an option for WJ as his fragile condition may have led to his demise in the car. Once the ambulance was arranged, and WJ's mother was on her way home, Pat did a beautiful thing.

She went into WJ's room and sat with him and his father and brother. She sat there selflessly and listened to stories of basketball games past. She sat there and listened to WJ's father and brother tell tales of his shenanigan's growing up. She sat there, in the place of a mother who could not. When the ambulance arrived, she bid her farewell to WJ. And then she cried the tears that she'd put off until that moment.

WJ passed away, yet the impact that Pat had on his family remains. Just the other day, in fact, WJ's mother called to speak with her about her year of "firsts" without her son. Pat listened compassionately.

This one example of Pat's amazing presence, truly exemplifies the spirit of the DAISY Award.