Utah StoryCorps - Hope and Healing

Holly Moss-Rosen found herself taking her son, Alex, for leukemia treatments at a Utah hospital where she also works and cares for children with the disease. Colleague Kiley Patáno found little ways to make this family’s burden a little lighter.

Bucked off her horse and lying in a dry creek bed, Marie Zaphiropoulos found herself with serious injuries to her forehead, ribs, and back. Marie recalls being greeted at a rural Utah hospital’s emergency department by a kind woman who went to work caring for Marie – even washing her hair. This sparked a desire inside Marie to give back to the hospital that took such good care of her.

Exercise physiologist Tiffany Gust’s mantra, “Play big—because you can and because you're worth it,” is reflected in her passion for triathlons and even a full-distance ironman. Then Tiffany had a series of mini-strokes and learned she had a hole in her heart. She was devastated, but came back strong, continuing her commitment to fitness and to inspiring others. Tiffany says to fellow caregiver Christy Lawson, “I know you would like to do a triathlon, and I would love to help you reach that goal.”

Yasmen Simonian has always used her voice for good, and going through breast cancer and a mastectomy helped her magnify that voice. In a conversation with radiologist Dr. Brett Parkinson, she explains she’s no longer afraid to do things—and how beating breast cancer has given her the liberty to be an advocate of early detection.

After being diagnosed as pre-diabetic, Jay Whatcott knew he needed to make changes, but he didn’t know where or how to start. He joined the100-day Heart Challenge at a Utah hospital, where he learned to exercise and eat healthy.

When Hernando Manrique came to Utah from Colombia, he didn’t know what to expect. But he found his way by continuing to drink his Colombian coffee, sharing his passion for soccer—ultimately meeting his wife through soccer—and using his roots to connect with Hispanic patients in his job as a security officer at a Utah hospital. Here, he shares his story with colleague Abram Jones.

Kara Mortensen and Cheryl Satterthwaite, who live just miles apart in northern Utah, discovered that the children they adopted have the same birth mother. The children, Eli and AleyahJai, now enjoy regular outings together and their parents are excited to have their children share beautiful journeys as they grow up.

During medical school and early on in their careers, husband and wife medical doctors, Sumaira Arain and Suleman Iqbal would go up to 48 hours without seeing one another.

Congenital heart disease kills more kids than all childhood cancers combined. Nola Spicer and Nicura Thompson know this first-hand.

Mike Bleak has served as commissioner in Iron County, Utah since 2016. He previously worked in public safety for more than two decades, most recently as a detective with the Cedar City Police Department. Here, Mike and his wife Amy talk about “the choking game,” a topic Mike is passionate about preventing and speaks about close to home, across the United States, and abroad. Mike is also open and candid about experiencing post-traumatic stress from his career in law enforcement.

Marc Harrison and Katy Welkie, two healthcare leaders, first worked together at a Utah hospital in the 1990s, when Dr. Harrison was completing a pediatric intensive care fellowship and Katy worked as a nursing director. The two shared — and continue to share — a passion for people, healing, and improving healthcare. "If the world is going to be cruel at times, I want to be part of something that tries to be the counterbalance to that."

Siblings Kory Woodbury, MD, and Cyndi Gilbert have both excelled in their careers. Cyndi became a lawyer as a means to an end, while Kory followed his passion to become a cardiothoracic surgeon. While they reflect on the others’ career path, they acknowledge that each has made the world a better place.

With their daughter, Marjorie, in a coma with a traumatic brain injury following a car accident, George and Melisa Medina heard words from the neurologist that no parent wants to hear: “Your daughter may never be herself again." But with physical therapy three times a day and some serious grit and determination, Marjorie learned to walk and feed herself again—and even returned to the softball field she loves.

Adam Ellington knew as a child that he wanted to serve as a medic in the military, and he joined the Army at age 17. Today, Adam is a major with the U.S. Army Reserves 807th Medical Command Deployment Support, and also works full-time as a hospital quality and safety manager. Here, Adam talks with colleague Joel Thomas about his passion for his work as a medic and his service as a pilot in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Siblings Maylee and Alex Homer have spent a significant portion of their childhood in a healthcare setting. Maylee has grown up with lung disease and Alex was born with half a heart and has had a heart transplant. They discuss the ups and downs of being in the hospital for extended periods, learning to trust doctors, and making friends with other patients.

It’s been 20 years since Val Guerra became a U.S. citizen. Since then, she’s helped her husband, mom, and step dad all become citizens. From her first step off the plane from Guatemala as a timid school girl, to learning to skydive and becoming a grandmother, Val and longtime friend, Terri Draper, reflect on how she’s evolved since coming here.

For emergency medicine Drs. Adam Balls and Christopher Anderson, medical school didn’t provide a lot of training on communicating to families after a loved one dies. But taking time to acknowledge and honor the life of the deceased, even briefly, has helped them process the experience better and have more empathy toward those left behind.

When a grumpy, 25-year-old jaw and throat cancer patient came in, nurse Sarah Larsen and her team made it their mission to be extra nice to him. After a few days, the patient opened up about the challenges he was going through. Sarah and fellow nurse Jennie Wilder discuss how they make a difference to difficult patients by trying to relate to them, regardless of their attitude.

Patrick has spent the last eight years as a certified therapy dog. He helps patients feel calm and at ease during their hospital stay. But his owners, Katie and Bob Elder, got their biggest surprise when an ICU doctor – after a long, stressful day – asked if Patrick could come visit to help her calm down from the day. She pulled Patrick in and just held onto him.

While driving home from her job at a Utah hospital just after midnight in March 2018, Stephanie Dickey saw a car burning on the side of the road. She stopped and helped pull the driver out of the car, amid the flames. Here, she talks with her sister, Kiirsten Meng, about that night. "I don't consider myself a hero. I just did what you should do."