Contributed by Sarah Beech

I wanted to share this story, not because I knew Nate so well – in all honesty I did not even know he was ill – but because it really exemplifies the kind of person he was at the core of his being.

I had just returned from maternity leave and was heading into the lecture hall for our weekly academic rounds. In addition to battling my emotions after leaving my baby to return to work, I also felt a bit nervous. Truth be told, I have quite a bit of social anxiety in new situations. Granted this was not entirely a new situation, but the people were new to me.

I walked into the room and tried my best to smile at anyone who met my gaze, however I found most busy with their already well-established friends. I took a seat at the back and resigned myself to the fact I probably would not “fit in” with this new group and figured it was for the best, as at least now I would fully listen to the lectures! I busied myself on my phone and almost did not notice when a guy dressed casually and wearing a baseball hat sat down beside me and said, “Hi, I’m Nate.” I looked up and was greeted by a warm face, a genuine smile, and kind eyes. I made some joke about being a loser sitting all alone and thanked him for saving me.

Throughout the course of the next few months, I often sat beside Nate during rounds, exchanging friendly banter and sarcastic jokes about the content of various presentations (sorry guys). I know it does not seem like much of anything perhaps to an outsider, but it was something to me. Nate could have easily sat with his friends or on his own and I certainly would not have thought any less of him. I was an outsider and it would have been a lot easier to just carry on, ignoring my presence. But that was not who he was.

He was the kind of guy, as illustrated by all the other stories I’ve read and listened to about Nate, that went above and beyond to help others – whether it’s a family member, a friend, a patient, or even a stranger. So I wanted to say thank you Nate, thank you for making me feel included and I am fortunate to have known you, even for a short time.