Amanda Scarapinati didn’t know exactly who the woman was, but for some reason, the photo Amanda had of her was able to bring Amanda comfort during hard times.
Amanda had an accident when she was born that left her burned and disfigured.
She fell off a couch and landed in a boiling steam vaporizer. The incident required her to undergo multiple reconstruction surgeries. After the incident, Amanda was photographed with her head wrapped in gauze as she was held by a 21-year-old nurse. Amanda always wondered who the nurse in the photo was and wanted to thank her.
“Growing up as a child, disfigured by the burns, I was bullied and picked on, tormented,” Amanda told Inside Edition. “I’d look at those pictures and talk to her, even though I didn’t know who she was. I took comfort looking at this woman who seemed so sincere, caring for me.”
So, Amanda decided that she would take to Facebook and post the photos to see if she could track the woman down.
“These are pictures of me as a baby while I was being treated at Albany Medical Center for 3rd degree burns in Albany, NY,” the post read.
“I tried almost 20 years ago to find out who the nurse is holding me but had no luck. Maybe now with the powers of social media someone will recognize her. This was from 1977. I would love to know her name and possibly get a chance to talk to her and meet her. Please share as you never know who it could reach.”
Less than 24 hours later, Amanda had the name of her nurse: Susan Berger.
“I really didn’t think it was ever going to happen,” Amanda said. “You’re searching for someone and you have a name – but I just had a face from 37 years ago. She’s real. She’s not actually just a picture anymore, she’s real.”
As it turns out, Amanda had just as much of an effect on Susan as Susan had on Amanda.
“She was an amazing little patient to be so calm and so trusting and so alert and attentive at her age having been through what she went through – she had to have been in pain – yet here she was,” Susan told Inside Edition.
Amanda finally reconnected with Susan almost 40 years later in an emotional reunion you can watch in the video below.
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
