This is the sweet moment a kindhearted nurse thrilled his young patient with an uplifting private performance by her bedside.
Kylie English, seven, watched in awe as Zack Koester, 23, crooned Rachel Patten’s ‘Fight Song’ on the transplant ward to lift her spirits after two months in hospital.
The poorly schoolgirl was admitted to Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago on January 6 with an invasive fungal infection called aspergillosis.
The illness caused her body to reject the small intestine transplant she received at 18 months old due to a syndrome which meant she couldn’t digest food by herself.
Little Kylie remains on the ward fighting the infection and is being treated by nurse Zack, who played guitar for the youngster on request.
Zack, who has worked on the surgical transplant unit for two years, usually only plays guitar when he is alone but made an exception in a bid to lift her spirits.
The medic said: “One of my coworkers mentioned to Kylie that I liked to sing and play guitar one afternoon, which I wasn’t aware of.
“Later that day, she came walking up to me in the hall with her mom and her mom prompted her. She said: ‘What did you want to ask Zack?’
“And in her little voice, she asked me if I would sing and play guitar for her.
“I immediately panicked because I knew there was no way I could say no to her but to do that was extremely nerve-wracking.
“Knowing how much it would mean to her though is what made it possible.”
Kylie’s mom Nallely Lopez, 32, from Lindenhurst, Illinois, caught the precious moment on camera.
She and Kylie’s dad Justin English, 30, say Zack lifted their spirits with the performance – and continues to do so.
Nallelly, who also has two-year-old twins Gavin and Lucia English, said: “When he works nights and Kylie can’t sleep you can just hear them whispering and talking.
“They have the cutest conversations. She looks forward to seeing him.
“Someone on the ward said he played a little bit of guitar but only for himself. But Kylie asked him to play for her and he couldn’t say no.
“He was so nervous but it was amazing. It really lifted Kylie’s spirits, and all of ours.”
Doctors were forced to remove Kylie’s small intestine in January after her body began to reject it.
She will have to wait for up to a year until she is eligible to rejoin the transplant list.
Nallely said: “It’s very hard because we have lost the intestine we’ve fought so hard to keep for so long.
“Right now, we just want this infection to be completely out of her system so she can join the transplant list again.
“But she’s so lucky to have the wonderful staff at Lurie who always do everything they can to make us feel better.”
Zack added: “I love taking care of Kylie because she is so strong and inspiring.
“Seeing how she is able to get through everything that she does, truly makes me a stronger and better person.
“Her mom is also so amazing. Talk about inspiration.
“She is Kylie’s rock and never leaves Kylie’s side no matter how much we encourage her to step away and make sure she’s taking care of herself too.
“When you see these kids and their families go through the things that they do and you’re there through all of it with them, it’s impossible to not form a bond with them and a love for them.”
