Sharing inspiration: A NICU nurse and pro surfer daughter

Reid Van Wagoner, 17, remembers waking up before the sun on the morning of a surf competition and finding her mom already in the kitchen. Marcy Van Wagoner, 56, was dressed in scrubs, her hospital badge clipped on, making breakfast and helping Reid get ready before heading to work.

“I remember thinking how early she had to be up, but she was still making sure I was taken care of first," Reid says. "Taking care of people is her love language.”

For 30 years, Marcy has worked as a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) nurse at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women & Newborns.

Reid, a professional surfer, competed this summer at the Super Girl Surf Festival in Oceanside, the world’s largest female surfing event. Sharp was the official health care sponsor.

In October, after six runner-up finishes, Reid won her first World Surf League event, moving her up the rankings to No. 1 in North America.

Inspired by their close bond, Sharp featured the mother-daughter duo in the video, “Strong Women Raise Strong Women,” which follows their parallel journeys as a NICU nurse and professional surfer.

Thirty years in the NICU

For as long as Reid can remember, she has watched her mom get up at 5 am to do work she genuinely loves.

Marcy values the teamwork of the NICU and the opportunity to watch newborns recover from serious illnesses. Most of all, she treasures supporting families during some of the most difficult moments of their lives.

“Sometimes being strong means knowing how to fight for a baby, and sometimes it means simply being there for a family when they need someone to lean on,” she says.

That example shaped Reid’s understanding of strength. “My mom is one of the strongest people I know,” Reid says. “She’s taught me so many things without having to explain them. I’ve learned just by watching her.”

Ready for anything

As an advanced life-support nurse, Marcy assists with high-risk deliveries, where preparation can make a critical difference.

She recalls an emergency delivery involving a baby born at about 28 weeks. Because her team arrived prepared with a neonatal crash cart, radiant warmer and other specialized equipment, they were able to successfully resuscitate the baby.

“You never really know what the day will bring,” she says. “You just have to walk through those doors prepared to give everything you have.”

Reid approaches surf competitions in much the same way. She can’t control the ocean, so she focuses on preparing herself.

“Your heart starts beating faster,” Reid says. “But you can’t let it take over. You have to trust the work you’ve put in and keep going.”

It’s a lesson Marcy has modeled throughout her career: Prepare for anything, then trust the preparation.

“Go take good care of the babies”

When Reid was younger, she often woke up just as her mom was leaving for work. "Go take good care of the babies,” Reid would tell Marcy.

After each shift, Reid wanted to hear stories from the NICU. By age 9, she understood that some of those babies her mom cared for were fighting for their lives.

She also witnessed one of the most difficult periods of Marcy’s career. During the COVID-19 pandemic, NICU nurses were called on to help in adult units. Reid saw how exhausted her mom was, yet she continued to show up.

“Watching that my whole life has taught me that you don't always have to feel ready,” Reid says. "Sometimes you just have to get up and do it."

Letting her find her limits

Reid has been in the ocean since she was a baby and was fearless from the start. Sometimes Marcy allowed the waves to challenge her daughter so she could learn to respect the ocean.

One memory stands out. When Reid was 13, she stayed out in massive waves in Haleiwa, Hawaii, until after sunset while Marcy watched nervously from shore. “As a mother, there is a very strange combination of knowing you have to let your child find her own limits while every instinct in you is screaming to protect her,” Marcy says.

Watching from the sand

Asked to describe a single moment that captures who the other person is, both recall a day on the beach.

For Marcy, it was watching Reid earn a perfect 10 on a wave in Barbados and seeing her celebrate with humility and respect for her competitors. "She can fight hard for what she wants while still showing kindness and grace," Marcy says.

For Reid, it's a sunset surf at the Oceanside Pier. Emerging from a wave, she spotted her mom on the sand, smiling and clapping. "After all the early mornings, long drives, cold days and competitions, she was still there on the beach watching me surf,” she says.

Somewhere along the way, the lessons began flowing in both directions.

“I may have taught Reid how to show up,” Marcy says, "but she has taught me how to keep smiling while I do it."

Learn more about pregnancy; get the latest health and wellness news, trends and patient stories from Sharp Health News; and subscribe to our weekly newsletter by clicking the "Sign up" link below.