ST. JOHNSBURY, VT – December 1, 2025 – Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital (NVRH) recognized outstanding staff members on Friday, November 21, honoring Katie Renfrew, RN with the DAISY Award for Extraordinary Nurses® and Clinical Dietitian Coordinator Chad Proulx, RDN, CD, CDCES for the BEE Award for his work in nutrition and diabetes education.
The DAISY Award is part of the DAISY Foundation’s mission to recognize the extraordinary, compassionate care nurses provide their patients and their families every day. The DAISY (Diseases Attacking the Immune System) Foundation is a not-for-profit organization, established in memory of J. Patrick Barnes. Barnes died at the age of 33 from complications of the autoimmune disease Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura. The care Barnes and his family received from nurses while he was ill inspired this award.
NVRH nurse Liberty O’Neal, RN opened the ceremony with some background on The DAISY Foundation and the DAISY Award before turning it over to NVRH Chief Nursing Officer Aimee Carew-Lyons, who presented each nurse with their certificate.
Melanie Gagnon nominated Renfrew for the Daisy Award after delivering her son at the Birth Center at NVRH earlier this year.
Already familiar with Renfrew’s bubbly, upbeat personality, Gagnon was “beyond happy” to learn that Renfrew would be her night nurse during her hospital stay. “Let’s get this baby moving!” Gagnon recalls Renfrew saying.
“She got me into positions that helped progress my labor. She showed me different techniques for pain management as she knew I wanted to try a natural delivery.
After receiving an epidural, Gagnon’s blood pressure dropped, as did her baby’s heart rate. Nurses were in and out of the room, delivering oxygen and trying to reposition her to help get the baby’s heart rate up.
“Katie stayed calm and collected and explained everything to me that was going on,” she said. Gagnon’s baby was born at 5pm but just a few hours later Katie was back on the night shift and caring for Gagnon and her new arrival.
“She ended up taking my son and letting my boyfriend and I sleep for 4 hours, as the night before was very long and exhausting,” Gagnon recalled. Katie fed the baby and made sure that Gagnon was up and moving as much as possible, wearing compression socks, and elevating her feet.
‘You can tell that Katie s passion is caring for new moms and babies,” Gagnon said. “I am truly blessed she was my nurse throughout my hospital stay.”
Twenty-one nurses and LNAs were nominated, with several nurses receiving more than one nomination.
“Having patients and their families nominate our nurses for the DAISY award and show up to personally recognize the people who took care of them means so much,” said Carew-Lyons. “Our nurses go above and beyond every day and their work makes a tremendous impact on our patients and their families.”
Nominees included Alessio Argutto, RN, Harmony Berube, RN, Alex Bolger, RN, Tawnya Brown, RN, Mabel Buteau, LNA, Suhaill Dever, RN, Ragda Hasan, RN, Diane Griffin, RN, Tara Kaplan, RN, Patricia “Patti” Kearney, RN, Amber Kholer, RN, Heather Linehan, LNA, Wendy Longmoore, RN, Annie McCaffrey, RN, Abbigail Palmer, RN, Annie Scherber, LNA, Elizabeth “Lizzi” Stevens, RN, Yvette St. Hilaire, RN, and Katherine Walters, RN.
Other excerpts from the DAISY Award nominations include:
Annie McCaffrey, RN
“During a particularly challenging shift…Annie remained calm, composed, and compassionate throughout. It was clear she was emotionally exhausted, yet she never wavered in her commitment to providing quality care.”
Yvette St. Hilaire, RN
“Yvette went above and beyond to provide me with compassionate and superior critical care. She did that with humor and empathy, all while mentoring other less experienced nursing staff. I felt so comfortable in her hands as did my family members who she also supported. She is a true treasure for NVRH!”
Diane Griffin, RN and Tara Kaplan, RN
Diane was the most nurturing and reassuring person who helped me get the birth I had hoped for after several weeks of anxiety leading to this delivery. After delivery, I had a significant post-partum hemorrhage and she was so calm and reassuring that I would be OK…Tara was my nighttime nurse all my evenings at NVRH, and she picked right up where Diane left off, caring for me for the entire night following surgery…These two nurses made all the difference to me in such a scary and vulnerable time.”
Amber Kholer, RN
Amber in the ER is the best nurse you will find!
Harmony Berube, RN
“Above all, Harmony radiates compassion. Whether she’s comforting an anxious patient, advocating for a vulnerable family, or uplifting a tired coworker, her empathy and kindness shine through in all she does. Her light is contagious, and her presence makes our office a better place for both staff and patients.”
Alex Bolger, RN
Alex was the nurse assigned to care for a patient who came into the hospital experiencing suicidal thoughts, hallucinations, and paranoia…Alex stayed with her for over an hour, helping her to feel safe to take medicines, get dressed and have her medical work-up completed. He was patient, kind, and developed a rapport with her that ultimately allowed her to get the care she needed.”
Abbigail Palmer, RN
“I brought my 7-year-old in for serious ear pain, bawling and screaming. Abby calmed him down and got him to let the nurses do an ear exam. She was so calm with him and made him smile and answer all questions asked of him. Abby genuinely cares about welfare of her patients.”
“I am a frequent flyer at NVRH. When Abby is there, she treats me like family. She makes sure I have everything I could need or want to feel comfortable and loved and safe. Even though it’s an emergency department, she makes it feel like you’re valued and you belong.”
Tawnya Brown
“Tawyna is a rockstar! She is always super friendly and gives 100% to all of her patients. She shows compassion with everything she does, whether it’s helping her fellow nurses or answering a question from the front staff.”
Wendy Longmoore, RN
“Wendy was my nurse for many nights during my stay. She was absolutely amazing with her ethics, and bedside manner.”
Ragda Hasan, RN
“My life partner and I were both treated with dignity, skill and kindness during his extended stay by the night nursing care of Ragda, who is a traveling nurse. When our family from Syria called to offer love and well wishes, we were marveled to learn that Ragda was from Damascus. I felt like she was an angel from Damascus who was serendipitously present post-op to help heal him both physically and emotionally with skill, grace and encouraging positivity.”
Katherine Walters, RN
“Katherine in ICU deserves to be recognized for being a great and compassionate nurse. Not only has she been great to her patient but also to the family and friends.”
Suhaill Dever, RN, Patricia “Patti” Kearney, RN, Katherine Walters, RN, Heather Linehan, LNA, Mabel Buteau, LNA
“It was not easy to pick just one staff member because every single person was phenomenal. I would like to nominate several extraordinary nurses/LNAs who made the recent hospital stay an experience filled with compassion, professionalism and comfort beyond what I could imagine. From the moment I was admitted to the ED for dangerously high blood pressure. I was scared and overwhelmed. I was then transferred to Med Surg and it was just incredible. Each one of them treated me not just as a patient but as a person. They explained things with patience, comforted me when I was anxious, and made sure I felt safe every step of the way.”
Annie Scherber, LNA
“This is my second time in the ICU within 7 months, and both times Annie, has proven to be a true professional. Annie is truly dedicated to her job and chosen profession. Her concern and care for me and other patients is above and beyond.”
“From the day I was admitted, Annie went above and beyond to make sure my stay was as comfortable as possible…She is a true blessing and made me feel safe.”
“When my friend was in the ICU, Annie stepped right up to do anything she could do to make her comfortable…Annie had the best attitude, friendly and most of all, caring.”
Elizabeth “Lizzi” Stevens, RN
“Lizzi not only took control, but she took the time to sit there and kindly explain everything that was going on to me. She answered every question we had and she was nothing but kind, patient and extremely hard-working…I felt like she genuinely cared about us and my mom, just like we did.”
Alessio Argutto, RN
“I never met anyone who loves what he does as much as Alessio, which I find very admirable. Alessio’s caring and compassion for me as a patient broke the scale.”
Nurses may be nominated by patients, families and colleagues and the award recipient is chosen by a committee at NVRH. DAISY nomination forms and collection boxes can be found in units throughout the hospital and at all of our medical practices. Electronic nominations can also be completed by visiting https://www.daisyfoundation.org/daisy-award/thank-your-nurse-nomination.
BEE Award awarded to Outstanding Non-Nursing Staff
For the second year, NVRH presented the BEE awards, highlighting and honoring the incredible contributions of non-nursing staff. The BEE Award stands for Being Extraordinary Everyday and recognizes employees who exemplify what it means to go above and beyond. Clinical Dietitian Coordinator Chad Proulx, RDN, CD, CDCES was nominated by Norah Lewis, RN for his caring, compassionate work with patients, including one recent patient who thought that that a diabetes diagnosis meant that “his life was over.” With Proulx’s one-on-one nutritional education and encouragement, the patient learned that healthier eating and using a continuous glucose monitor could help him monitor his diabetes and live a healthy, active life.