Honoring Our Colleagues Lost to COVID-19: A Salute to VNSNY Partners in Care Home Health Aide Nancy Norman

The heroism shown by the staff of the Visiting Nurse Service of New York in tremendously challenging times is legendary. From the influenza epidemic of 1918 and the polio outbreaks of the mid-20th century, to the emergence of AIDS in the 1980s and the devastation of the 9/11 attacks and Superstorm Sandy, VNSNY’s courageous women and men have always been there to provide care and comfort to New Yorkers in troubled times, despite the risk to themselves.

The 2020 COVID-19 pandemic is no exception. Over the past two months, we have been working tirelessly and with unsurpassed determination under incredibly difficult circumstances so that our patients and plan members can continue to receive the care they need. Many of our colleagues have been stricken with COVID-19 themselves. Thankfully, most of them have recovered and many have even returned to work. Sadly and tragically, however, eight of our coworkers have died. They include six home health aides with Partners in Care, a physical therapist with VNSNY Home Care, and a social worker with VNSNY Hospice.

“These VNSNY heroes dedicated their lives to caring for others, and their contributions will never be forgotten,” says VNSNY President and CEO Marki Flannery. “We will remember them, honor them, and celebrate their lives.”

As part of this remembrance, with permission from the families, we will be publishing Frontline tributes to our fallen colleagues over the coming weeks.

Nancy Norman

Spring tulips were Nancy Norman’s favorite flowers.

Nancy Norman, a Home Health Aide with Partners in Care, was a 22-year veteran of VNSNY.^* She passed away a day before her birthday. “It was VNSNY’s good fortune for Nancy to be with us all these years,” says Patricia Rodriguez, her HHA Supervisor in the Bronx. “Her clients just loved her!”

In recent years, Nancy dedicated herself to a single client, an elderly woman in the Bronx named Ms. C., who she provided care for five days a week from 8 am to 2 pm, plus a 12-hour shift on Sundays. “They were very close,” says Patricia. “Ms. C. is largely bed-bound, and Nancy did everything for her—changing her, doing laundry, shopping for groceries and cooking meals. She was so good with her.”

Nancy’s already devoted care would reach new heights during holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas, recalls Patricia. “Nancy cooked special meals for her client on all the holidays,” she says. “Traditional foods like collard greens—the whole nine yards, you know? She would also decorate her client’s apartment at Christmas. Nancy was always going above and beyond!”

Partners in Care Home Health Aide Claudette Patrick had her own close relationship with Nancy, for they shared the same client. When Claudette came in at 2 pm to begin her afternoon shift with Ms. C., she recalls, she and Nancy would take a few minutes to catch up. “We would always talk and share information, including anything that was going on with our client. Nancy would tell me if anything had happened that morning that I should know about, and if anything occurred in the afternoon, I would call her the next morning and let her know. Our communication was very, very good.”

Through their professional connection, says Claudette, the two became personally close as well. “We were friends,” she says. “I would come in Mondays and say to her, ‘How was your weekend, Nancy? I hope it was enjoyable.’ And she would ask me the same thing. We would always help each other out. She was a wonderful, wonderful woman, one of the nicest people you could ever meet. I really miss her.”

Claudette agrees that Nancy had a special fondness for holidays. “If I worked with Ms. C. on Christmas Eve and Christmas, Nancy would prepare the Christmas Day meal ahead of time and leave it for us. She even put up the tree!” Claudette especially remembers the last time Nancy celebrated Ms. C.’s birthday. “It was the 12th of March, just a short time ago. Nancy loved celebrating her birthday—she would get Ms. C. a cake, cook a special meal, and host a small get-together. She was so thoughtful.”

“My mother was a wonderful mom and a loving grandmother,” says Nancy’s daughter, Joan Norman. “Her family was the most important thing to her. She and my son had a real bond—we all live together, and she was his Nana and his best friend. She also loved her job. She was talking about retiring, but she said she wouldn’t know what to do with herself!” Nancy “had a great sense of humor,” adds her daughter. “She would tell it to you like it is, and people appreciated her honesty. Once you got to know her, you had a friend for life. She would treat you like family. She would always be there for you, no matter what, and she would give you her last.”

For Joan, who is an only child, this last Mother’s Day was an especially difficult time. “That’s always been a special day for my mom and me,” she says. “She saved every little handmade Mother’s Day card that I made for her when I was a child. We would still joke about the Mother’s Day breakfast I tried to make for her when I was about seven years old! As adults, we had a tradition of going shopping the day before to get our Mother’s Day outfits.” Not being able to share this and other springtime rituals—Nancy’s favorite flowers were tulips—will weigh on her, adds Joan. “It’s very hard, not celebrating Mother’s Day with her this year. I miss her terribly. I miss her advice, and I miss my best friend.”

Nancy resided in the Bronx. She is survived by her husband Jerome Norman, her daughter Joan Norman, and her grandson Jerome Robert Norman.

If you would like to send a condolence message or other acknowledgement to Nancy’s family, please email Leslie Dorman, Director, Human Resources, at [email protected]. If you would like to submit a special story or remembrance about Nancy, please send it using the Contact Us page on Frontline. We will post these responses as they come in.

* Note: At the family’s request, we did not include a photo of Nancy in this tribute.