Cecilia Cece Hedrick

Cecilia Grace Hedrick (Cece), 58, beloved daughter of the late Peter Jay Hedrick, and Elizabeth Quarrier Hedrick (Libby), died at home in her sleep Friday night, December13th.Cece was born on January 24, 1967. She attended Ithaca's Alternative Community School, and she got her nursing degree at Marymount University in Arlington, VA. Her first job was at Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C. where she worked in Orthopedics and Neurology. Each time Peter and I visited her we found a stack of letters of thanks from the grateful parents of her patients. The call of her first love, Labor and Delivery, was very strong, so when Cece was offered a job in this field at Woodwinds Hospital in Woodbury, Minnesota, she was happy to accept. Cece was known for her compassion, empathy and for going the extra mile for her patients. Cece was quite a traveler, and she spent her annual two week vacations seeing the world. One of her highlights was being awakened in the middle of the night to watch the eruption of the volcano Kilauea on the Big Island of Hawaii. The last 10 years or so of Cece's life were marked by ill health, ambulance trips to the the hospital, and constant pain. However, she navigated all this with grace, strength, humor and tenacity. Her faith was steadfast and fathomless, and recently she felt that her time on earth was coming to a close. Her heartbroken family feel grateful for her presence with us, and we are sure that her entrance into her next life was met with joyous Alleluias! Cece is survived by her mother, Libby Hedrick, sister Jake (Jon) Farris, aunt, Sara (Steve) Tavender, aunt Kate Burt, aunt Carol (Bob) Altomare, and many cousins. Cece's memorial service will be in the Spring. Memorial gifts may be made to St. John's Episcopal Church, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or SPCA of Tompkins County.