Donna Gustafson loved her kids and grandkids, Diet Coke, and loved her career as an LPN. “My mom was a caring person,” shared her daughter, Amy Pocrnich.

She remembers the last time she hugged her mother, which was October 21th, 2020, on Gustafson’s birthday.

Gustafson died on December 5th, 2020, from COVID. She had been living at the Diamond Willow assisted living facility in Proctor.

Her daughters, Pocrnich and Jill Coleman, had been living for a week outside the facility, in an ice fishing tent. They wanted to be nearby during that hospice time.

Due to regulations about the pandemic, they could not go in.

“It was sad, knowing she was going to pass. But we were actually very close that week,” Pocrnich added.

Natalie Zeleznikar worked there at the time. When she became a representative, she knew making a support person law would be a priority.

“Their mom was a catalyst. That we should do better, and we can do better. That’s what the support person bill is all about,” Zeleznikar said.

The law went into effect July 1st. It allows for one support person present when receiving health care services. A law about a support person for pregnant women was passed in 2023.

Jill told us they are grateful their mom is able to leave this kind of legacy. “To know that somebody else doesn’t have to be alone, that would be worth it to her,” Coleman said.