“I was Alex Pretti’s final nursing student. He was my friend and my nursing mentor,” Jessica Hauser wrote on Facebook. “For the past four months, I stood shoulder to shoulder with him during my capstone preceptorship at the Minneapolis VA Hospital. There he trained me to care for the sickest of the sick as an ICU nurse. He taught me how to care for arterial and central lines, the intricacies of managing multiple IVs filled with lifesaving solutions, and how to watch over every heartbeat, every breath, and every flicker of life, ready to act the moment they wavered. Techniques intended to heal.”
“Alex carried patience, compassion and calm as a steady light within him,” she continued. “Even at the very end, that light was there. I recognized his familiar stillness and signature calm composure shining through during those unbearable final moments captured on camera.”
“It does not surprise me that his final words were, ‘Are you okay?’ Caring for people was at the core of who he was. He was incapable of causing harm. He lived a life of healing, and he lived it well.”
“Alex believed strongly in the Second Amendment and in the rights rooted in our Constitution and its amendments. He spoke out for justice and peace wherever he could, not out of obligation, but out of a belief that we are more connected than divided, and that communication would bring us together.”
“I want his family to know his legacy lives on. I am a better nurse because of the wisdom and skills he instilled in me. I carry his light with me into every room, letting it guide and steady my hands as I heal and care for those in need.”
“Please honor my friend by standing up for peace, preferably with a cup of black coffee in hand and a couple pieces of candy in your pocket, just as he would. He would remind you that caring for others is hard work, and we must do whatever it takes to get through the long shifts. Step outside with your dog, breathe in the world, hike or bike as he loved to do, and let yourself find peace in the quiet moments within nature. Stand up for justice and speak with those whose views differ from your own. Hold your beliefs with strength, but always extend love outward, even in the face of adversity.”
Take one small step, no matter how tiny, to help heal our world. Through these actions, carry his light forward in his memory. Let his legacy continue to bring healing,” she said.
America lost someone very special when this inspiring man was killed by masked federal agents.
May his life remind all of us to work together to support our fellow people. We don’t have to give in to sadness and anger. We can listen to the good parts of ourselves and find a way to leave the darkness behind.
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