Saying Goodbye to the Hospital Crew

Two nights ago, I washed, dried, and folded Ryan's scrubs...for the last time. He was asleep on the couch, worn out from an exhausting day of emptying our attic and putting memories in long-term storage. (On a 90+ degree day, nonetheless.)

For the last nine years, scrubs have been part of his life as he invested and immersed himself in a career he never imagined for himself. As he would tell you, when he graduated from high school, he didn't have college on his radar, because he didn't think he was smart enough to go. He knew he wasn't cut out for farm life, so he headed to the factory. And for over ten years, he did factory work. He was good at it, and it paid well, but he eventually realized it was going to age his body quickly if he kept up the pace.

That's when a friend from church asked him if he'd ever thought about going to school to learn physical therapy. He had not, but after their talk, he researched it and almost immediately signed up for classes. Almost thirty years old and finally headed to college. (Where, by the way, he found out he was not only smart enough, but he was a good student.)

He had a clinical rotation at a rehab hospital, and at the end of his rotation, they threw him a going away party.

But a job opened up, and he stayed.

They threw him two other going away parties throughout the last nine years, and for one reason or another, he ended up getting to stay every single time.

Last week they threw going-away-party-number-four. This time he's really leaving.

They all are.

I told one of my friends that I wasn't sure if it was easier to say goodbye knowing they're all going to be going their separate ways, or harder, because he left earlier than the rest.

Either way, it was a hard couple of days of goodbyes to friends who became family over almost a decade. We've walked some hard roads with some of them - and they've done the same for us. My goodness, when Ryan's mom was sick and dying, those people stepped up and covered for him so he could be at her surgery, her last days, her funeral. They sent us gift cards and left food on our porch. Most of them sat for hours in a packed church to pay their respects to a woman they'd never met, just because they loved her son so much.

So saying goodbye wasn't just walking out of a job. It was a hard goodbye, made maybe-harder-maybe-easier by the hospital closure.

And folding up those scrubs for the last time was a bittersweet moment for me. That hospital uniform represented not just the hard work of earning the degree, but the hard work of investing in patients every single day for the last nine years.

But the going-away party was very sweet. And it had its funny moments, too. Like when they all worked hard to arrange the party and surprise Ryan, but none of them thought to check his schedule, so he actually had a patient during the hour of the party. (HA! Someone covered for him so he could attend.) Or like when Michelle said this was the LAST time she was going to one of his going-away parties.

He finally got some lunch! And then I made him pose with a full mouth. It's what I do.

Heather was working in another building that day, but she came in for the party!

Michelle when she's NOT kicking Ryan out...

I've written about Cindy before (with her permission). She was a miracle patient starting back when my mom was in the rehab hospital. She loves Ryan so much and wanted to be at his party!

This is Amanda, who worked in Ryan's department. Her daughter was born on our wedding day - actually DURING our wedding! (Clearly not at our wedding.)

Nick and Dani - also from Ryan's department. Ryan and Nick are so funny together! (Have I ever told you the story of the time I was dog sitting for Nick's dog and his mom scared me to death by showing up at the house? That's a good one.)

Ryan's boss, mentor, friend, and Phoebe's dad - David. David and his wife Sheila have been so so good to us. They haven't told Phoebe we are leaving.

Ryan was Chanteal's student back in the day before all the goodbye parties started. ;)

And Katie! She's the newest therapist in Ryan's department and she is a gem. She got married last fall, and we went to her wedding. She's a cat fan like we are!!

We missed a few people on the pictures, but we love all of them and are sure going to miss daily life with them.

This place has been home, and its closure will be a tremendous loss for the community. But I am grateful for the role the people here have played in Ryan's life the last nine years!