National Nurses United

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Dominique also says her mother was always ready to step up and step in to help out in any way. "If someone needed something done at church, or needed someone to watch a family member, or even needed to stay an extra shift, she always said yes to it," said Dom- inique. And Paiste-Ponder never forgot to enlist her family's help. Family and friends say Paiste-Ponder was a woman in constant motion, and only now do they realize what she truly did. "She was three people in one," said Dominique. Mahabir concurred, "You would turn around and she would be near the break room but then you turn around again and she is already at the end of the unit and you would be like, 'How did you get here?'" When the pandemic hit, Paiste-Ponder was one of many nurses at the hospital who called out management for failing to make appropriate personal protective equipment available to nurses and staff. She also faulted the hospital for deciding to put both Covid-19 patients and non-Covid-19 patients in the same unit. Linda Lam, another RN who worked with Paiste-Ponder, remembers her friend describing the frustration she had with the hospital's failure to protect the nurses. "She said 'These people [Sutter] don't care about us, it will take one of us to die, before they do something,'" relayed Lam. "She would always ask about how I was doing," said Mahabir, "I never once thought that I would have to worry about her being okay." In July, Paiste-Ponder was working on a unit where both Covid- 19 and non-Covid-19 patients were being cared for. She had been given only a surgical mask instead of an N95 mask to wear. When two Covid-19 patients became disoriented and wandered out of their rooms, Paiste-Ponder and another nurse ran after them, fearing they could expose other patients and staff. Both Paiste-Ponder and the other nurse contracted the virus. Paiste-Ponder became ill and after five days she passed away on July 17, 2020, in the emergency room of the hospital where she had worked for 25 years. When she died, her husband and daughters were not only suffering the terrible loss of their late wife and mother, they were also suffering from symptoms of Covid-19. Dominique says each month she marks the date of her mother's death by buying a bouquet of flowers. This year she plans to make a Day of the Dead altar for her mother to honor their Latin heritage. She intends to decorate the altar with photos of the family camping trips, their two dogs, and maybe the red wine that her mother loved. Mahabir says Paiste-Ponder was like a second mother to her and she is determined to carry on her legacy by mentoring other young nurses by providing the same level of care that Paiste-Ponder pro- vided throughout her career. "I believe she is in heaven," said Dominique. She says the best way to honor her mother is by striving to be her best self, despite the grief and the hardships. "My mom has always said whatever happens in life, just keep going," said Dominique, "I personally thank God for my mother. I feel like that is worth rejoicing over and just living how she lived, which is, selflessly, supporting others, and giving comfort to others when needed." Her family said that the legacy of Janine Paiste-Ponder will forever be remembered as a loving wife, nurturing mother, selfless and kind friend, and damn good nurse. —Rachel Berger Estrella Quillopa Malimban, RN everyone who knew Estrella Quillopa Malimban said she was a very hard worker, a devoted mother and friend, and the eldest of five daughters who not only dreamed of a better life but committed her- self to providing that dreamed-of life for her family. "She really took care of everyone," said Malimban's daughter, Shalimar Malimban, a 36-year-old actress. "She took care of her parents, she took care of her siblings, and she took care of her family. She took care of her patients. She just had a really big heart." As long as she can remember, Shalimar says her mother worked six days a week, but she never complained about her work, "I think she just loved being a nurse." Estrella Quillopa Malimban was born on July 1, 1955 in Quezon 34 N A T I O N A L N U R S E W W W . N A T I O N A L N U R S E S U N I T E D . O R G J U LY | A U G U S T | S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 0 Estrella Quillopa Malimban, RN

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