On November 8, Norma Cozad was in her Wood Lake kitchen making her famous pecan pie when everything changed. In the middle of baking, she had a stroke. The pie never made it into the oven.
She was flown from Valentine, Neb., to Bryan West Campus where she received lifesaving stroke care. The next step – build her strength, the stroke left the left side of her body weak and regain her communication skills.
At Bryan’s Acute Inpatient Rehabilitation unit, Norma met a team ready to match her spirit – something her family said was as much a part of her as her pie recipe. “Norma’s fierce independence and sense of community stood out to me,” shared her occupational therapist, Deanna Herman. “Her goals were clear: get back to cooking, baking, and living her daily life.”
Near the end of her rehab stay, she took a trip to the grocery store with her rehab team – an important step toward independence and the perfect chance to gather ingredients for the moment she’d been waiting for.
Before leaving rehab, Norma proudly made and shared her beautifully baked pecan pie. The team who had walked beside her in recovery got to taste the pie she’d been making the day her life changed – a sweet symbol of her hard work, resilience and return to the life she loves.
Take Your Next Step
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