Kathy Aries was one of the first nurses we saw the morning we learned we lost our unborn daughter at 37.5 weeks. Her gentle, prescriptive, and deeply kind approach guided us through the most tragic and difficult time in our lives.

Kathy’s voice helped quell our indecision, indecisiveness, and deep pain. Amidst the chaos, Kathy held both of our hands, looked us in the eyes, and stated, “Don’t let fear win,” in regard to our uncertainty in spending time with our daughter following her loss.

Kathy also told us calmly and directly what we could expect when our daughter arrived, which helped immensely in the ensuring hours. We needed someone to explain what was happening and Kathy was the calm, cool, collected voice of reason throughout our trauma. We are eternally grateful for her support as the time we spent with our daughter was profoundly meaningful and something we will never forget.

My spouse and I talk about Kathy every few days when recounting what happened, and we tell all our family and friends about her. We both smile when we bring her up; smiling being something that doesn’t come often nowadays. We are deeply thankful for the kindhearted nursing staff and Kathy, specifically, who was a small bright spot amidst the tragedy.