This nomination has been a long time coming.  

In 2017, my dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer, while in the midst of a number of other difficult life transitions. He was in excellent health up until the diagnosis, spending most of his time working outdoors -- building or being out on the water running his business. Those early days at Waldo's infusion center were long, scary, and a crash course in cancer treatment and the demands of living with terminal cancer. It was hard to imagine how my dad would adapt to it all. We didn't like to say it out loud, but we all knew that his ability to adapt would have a direct impact on the number of months he had left. It was a very dark and scary time. Then we met Tina, who became my dad's regular oncology nurse.  

At the time, Tina was new to oncology, but it was clear that she wasn't new to nursing. Tina has a distinct sense of calm to her, no doubt due to her days of working as an ER nurse in Hawaii. She was always willing to share stories from her time there, which were the perfect distraction from port accesses and nausea. Eventually, she and my dad began to swap stories from their respective travels around the world, which gave him the opportunity to regain his sense of self in that new environment. By extending her friendship to my dad and being someone he could trust and laugh with, she helped him reestablish another one of his core values: the ability to be in the moment with someone whose company and presence you enjoy, no matter the circumstances. With Tina's careful guidance, I watched in amazement as my dad began to find his footing again.

Furthermore, Tina was also kind and welcoming to anyone accompanying my dad -- usually me, my sister, and whoever else was able to tag along for the day (pre-pandemic!). Tina would greet us with her trademark easy smile, and help us cram into the small space, finding extra chairs and patiently sidestepping us as she went about her work. No matter how busy she was, she always found the time to ask us each how we were doing, bring in cups of tea, and show us pictures of her cat Lady Lauren -- small, consistent actions that translated into genuine warmth and humanity.  

After the first year, my dad's care was transferred to Pen Bay, while Tina stayed on at Waldo. Although we missed her terribly, we knew what to expect by then -- cancer treatment had become more routine and less daunting. With her warm nature and unwavering presence, Tina had done the impossible and taken the edge off of adapting to life with cancer, seeing us all through those initial months of treatment with her compassion. In the end, my dad was able to continue treatment for 3.5 remarkable years -- borrowed time that our family absolutely soaked up and cherished.  

I know that if he was still here, my dad would be in complete agreement -- Tina showed us a path forward at a time when we ourselves couldn't see one. Not a day goes by that I don't think of her and the way she took care of not only my dad, but our whole family.