Burned as baby, woman finally meets nurse who cared for her

Amanda Scarpinati is the baby being held by nurse Sue Berger in a photo taken in 1977 at Albany Medical Center.

After years of operations, Ms Scarpinati saw the image of the nurse as a reminder of the care she received as an infant.

But when the pictures, taken by photographer Carl Howard, were published in Albany Medical Center’s 1977 annual report, the captions did not include the nurse’s name.

Scarpinati tried to find out who the nurse was 20 years ago, but she was unsuccessful.

Berger told ABC News she was stunned and speechless to think that someone would have pondered her acts of kindness and saved the photo. Now shes nearing the end of her career, overseeing the health center at Cazenovia College in New Yorks Finger Lakes region.

Scarpinati and Berger said they planned to spend a few time together Tuesday evening and plan to keep in touch. ‘Thank you!’

It is never too late to say “Thank you” and that’s exactly what Amanda did when she found her nurse after 38, who cared for her when she was burnt as a baby. A nurse held her tight, tucking the three-month-old infant’s burned and bandaged head beneath her chin. She had to undergo several surgeries over the course of years and she was often shamed for her looks. “Growing up as a kid, blemished by the burns, I was bullied and picked on, plagued.”I’d stare at those pictures and conversed to her, even though I didn’t recognize who she was”.

‘I took comfort looking at this woman, who seemed so honest, caring for me’.

Angela Leary, another former nurse at Albany Medical, recognized the image and gave Scarpinati the name of the nurse. “I am over the moon right now”. For all that time, until Tuesday, she dreamed of meeting her again.

But Berger restored her faith in humanity. Usually when babies come out of surgery, theyre sleeping or crying. “She just has such calm, caring voice, just like I expected she’d have”.

But Berger says she feels even more blessed. “My heart just started to race, to imagine someone from so long ago could remember something like this”. But when she posted the photos on her Facebook page earlier this month seeking help with the search, she had her answer in a day.

The 38-year-old human resources manager from Athens said that the post had gone viral “with 5,000 shares across the country” within 12 hours.

It worked. The photos went viral, and on Tuesday, Scarpinati tearfully hugged Susan Berger, the nurse in the recovery room who was pictured.