After Removing A Dying Man From His Nursing Home, Firefighters Grant Last Wish

Shane Cooper, a firefighter and community resource paramedic, felt honored to be a part of the [...]

By Hunter Miller

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(Photo: The Mighty)

Let this heartwarming story restore your hope in humanity.

In 2008, a man named Edward Reis was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS), leaving him bedridden. He was then forced to move into Evergreen Hospice, an adult nursing home in Washington state.

To provide Reis with hospice care, a registered nurse named Leigh Gardner came to visit Reis three days a week. Reis and Leigh quickly became good friends forming a strong bond as she described him as a "gentle, gentle soul."

Leigh learned that Reis was a former forest ranger, and loved nothing more than being in the great outdoors. So when Reis' one last wish was to go outside just one more time, Leigh was determined to make that happen for her good friend.

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(Photo: The Mighty)

Reis' nurse/friend Leigh contacted the Snohomish County Fire District 1, and asked for their assistance in making this wish come true. The firefighters agreed, and the pictures of the touching outdoor adventure show just how special this moment was to everyone involved.

On March 26, 2014 the firefighters arrived at Evergreen Hospice. Reis was loaded into their firetruck as the group headed out for a three-hour outdoor excursion in Meadowdale Beach Park in Edmonds, Washington.

The outdoor trip granted Reis the opportunity to breathe the fresh air, listen to the birds chirping, and enjoy the smells of the surrounding flowers and tree bark.

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(Photo: The Mighty)

Shane Cooper, a firefighter and community resource paramedic, felt honored to be a part of the occasion. "That made it all worthwhile, Cooper told ABC. "That's a highlight of my career. I've been here for 25 years and that'll stay one of the highlights."

"The wheels of a gurney are like a shopping cart, so very small wheels on a trail - and it wasn't like one of those little running trails at all, it was like a hiking trail...and we would stop every so often and he would just sit and listen," Leigh recalled.

"And you know I went over to him and I said, 'Are you happy?' He's like, 'I'm so happy,'" Leigh continued.

Not long after this final trip to the outdoors, Reis passed away.

[H/T Little Things]

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