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A NICU nurse gets a visit from the many children she has saved

A NICU nurse gets a visit from the many children she has saved

Kleenex has released several shamelessly tear-jerking ads in recent months, and it’s hard to blame them. After all, they are advertising tissue paper. Their latest effort, titled “Tiny Miracles,” is no exception.

The commercial introduces us to the often thankless work of one very special neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurse. Gentle piano music accompanies an introduction to Renee, who works tirelessly in a NICU to ensure that her tiny patients get everything they need to have the best possible chance of both comfort and survival. Her job is to make sure these babies survive those crucial minutes, hours, days and weeks after birth.

“The NICU is an intensive care, which means that our babies are very critical and we don’t know if they are even going to make it through a shift,” explains Renee.

“These parents don’t get to take their babies home. I feel like if I treat the babies like I would want someone to treat my baby when I’m not there, that’s the most important thing.”

The camera follows Renee at work, checking up on tiny newborns and rocking a baby on her shoulder. We see a photo of Renee standing next to one her former patients, now a beautiful young woman.

Next comes the moment that turns this pleasant ad into a heartwarming sob-fest. Kleenex brings Renee an iPad and asks her to watch a video that we are told she knows nothing about. The video reveals the parents of children she has cared for or even saved. Couple after couple thank Renee for everything she has done for their child and their family.

“You are our hero,” says a smiling young mom.

“She asked, you know, do you want to hold him,” says another woman through tears. “None of the other nurses ever asked that. This was the first time I got to hold him and caress him.”

“She loved my child as her own child,” says another.

Renee watches the video through tears of her own. As the clip ends, the room fills with children, babies, and their parents. The kids are holding images of themselves as tiny babies, born in Renee’s NICU and cared for her in their first minutes and hours of life.

Here come the waterworks!

Renee embraces the children, and says through tears, “I love taking care of these babies. I don’t do what I do for any kind of thank you, but it’s a wonderful feeling to be appreciated.”

So while at the end of the day it’s still an ad for Kleenex, its message — “If there’s someone who’s made a difference in your life, show them” — is one we can all appreciate.