Burned as baby, woman finally finds nurse who cared for her
In this 1977 photo provided by Albany Medical Center, nurse Susan Berger cuddles infant Amanda Scarpinati, who had been severely burned by a steam vaporizer at home. (Carl Howard/Albany Medical Center via AP)
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - For 38 years, a few photographs have provided comfort to a woman who suffered terrible burns as a baby and endured years of playground taunts and painful surgeries thereafter.
The photos show Amanda Scarpinati at just 3 months old, her head thickly wrapped in gauze, gazing intently into the eyes of a young nurse who was cradling her. Shot for the Albany Medical Center's 1977 annual report, the images have a beatific, "Madonna and Child" quality.
As a baby, she had rolled off a couch onto a boiling steam vaporizer. Melted mentholated ointment scalded her skin. The burns would require many reconstructive surgeries over the years.
The photos helped.
"Growing up as a child, disfigured by the burns, I was bullied and picked on, tormented," she said. "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."
Scarpatini now lives Athens, 25 miles south of Albany, and works as a human resources manager. All her life, she has wanted to thank the nurse who showed her such loving care, but she didn't know her name.
She tried to find out 20 years ago, without success. The pictures, shot by photographer Carl Howard, didn't identify the subjects.
At a friend's urging, she tried again this month, posting the photos on Facebook and pleading for help.
"Within 12 hours, it had gone viral with 5,000 shares across the country," said Scarpinati.
She had her answer within a day: The fresh-faced young nurse with the long wavy hair was Susan Berger, then 21. Angela Leary, a fellow nurse at the medical center back then, recognized Berger and sent Scarpinati a message, saying "she was as sweet and caring as she looks in this picture."
Preserved by the photos, their encounters in the pediatric recovery room turned out to have a lasting impact on both their lives.
"I remember her," Berger said before their first face-to-face reunion on Tuesday. "She was very peaceful. Usually when babies come out of surgery they're sleeping or crying. She was just so calm and trusting. It was amazing."
Berger had been fresh out of college, and baby Amanda was one of her first patients. Now she's nearing the end of her career, overseeing the health center at Cazenovia College in New York's Finger Lakes region.
Both women were thrilled when they first spoke by phone.
"It was amazing," Scarpinati said. "She just has such a gentle, caring voice, just like I imagined she'd have."
Berger said she feels even more blessed.
"I don't know how many nurses would be lucky enough to have something like this happen, to have someone remember you all that time," Berger said. "I feel privileged to be the one to represent all the nurses who cared for her over the years."