Riley Sparre is a beacon of light to everyone she encounters. She approaches every patient with love, kindness, generosity, understanding, and compassion. As her clinical instructor for Med/Surg 2 and Pediatrics, I have witnessed her bedside care firsthand. Even in one of her weakest moments in life, with the tragic passing of a family member, she still persevered by keeping her commitment to nursing by showing up for clinical and providing exceptional care to her patients in need. She finds a way to connect to every patient she cares for.

One patient in particular comes to mind that Riley was caring for during her afternoon shift Peds clinical. She connected with a young 15-year-old female patient who was admitted for a craniopharyngioma. The patient had been in the hospital for a few weeks and had a number of procedures done, and was anticipating discharge. Riley gave this patient a lot of her time, she sat and listened carefully to everything this spirited teenager had to share - her likes, dislikes, fears/worries about her health, school, her hopes and dreams for the future. She engaged with this patient wholeheartedly. When it was time to leave, the patient was already sleeping, so Riley left her a thoughtful and detailed goodbye note. This was a sweet gesture, but we didn't realize the impact it had until a few weeks later, when the patient was readmitted and Riley was able to care for her again. The patient was ecstatic to have Riley care for her, and she explained how she had kept Riley's note in her journal and how much that note meant to her. She said she would remember Riley and the experiences she shared with her forever.

People will forget what you said, or what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel. Riley is well-deserving of a DAISY Award as she embodies the true meaning of nursing by providing patient-centered, holistic, compassionate care.