Mary Ramsden still remembers what she was wearing the day her life changed. The blue Ralph Lauren turtleneck and designer jeans with a stripe on the left side have never been worn again. The outfit serves as a reminder of the November 2007 afternoon when the Ramsden Family learned their 10-year-old daughter, Nikki, was diagnosed with leukemia.

While Mary grappled with the new diagnosis for her oldest daughter, it was not an unfamiliar road for the family to travel. Several years prior, Mary’s husband John suffered with his own cancer diagnosis and treatment. Now the family faced the disease two-fold. Just one month after Nikki’s diagnosis, John suffered a relapse.

What came next was a series of treatments, tests, holidays, laughter, and tears – with St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital and St. Joseph’s University Medical Center serving as the backdrop for both family gatherings and critical conversations.

“John and Nikki tag-teamed their cancers on different units at St. Joseph’s,” Mary remembers. “When John and Nikki’s worlds were turned upside down, the St. Joseph’s team made the difference. They became a part of our family,” Mary says. “It was a relief to stay close to home and know they were both receiving the best possible care.”

The experts at St. Joseph’s Health surrounded the Ramsden family with expertise and support, coordinating treatments for both John and Nikki so the family could also care for their younger daughter, Samantha, and keep her routine as close to normal as possible. Although the family considered traveling for Nikki’s treatment, they quickly realized that the St. Joseph’s care team was administering the same advanced protocols as other nationally-known cancer centers.

“The St. Joseph’s team celebrated Christmas with us,” Mary remembers. “They had gifts for Samantha. And they instilled so much knowledge in us, which allowed us to make sound decisions. That knowledge helped me to never regret any of the decisions we made because they brought us along in (Nikki’s) care journey.”

Nikki eventually succumbed to her illness on February 22, 2010. “It wasn’t just about the little patient in the bed,” Mary says. “We became a family. St. Joseph’s truly took care of us all. We will be forever grateful for their compassionate care.”