It’s been said it’s never too late to show appreciation to someone who made a difference in your life.

That’s what Brewton’s Michelle Lee and her son, Ryan, did this week.

Twelve years ago, Michelle gave birth to Ryan at Andalusia Health.

Ryan was born via emergency C-section and was very sick.

Nurse Amy Snider would become a hero of sorts to the Lee family.

“She sat with him in the nursery when I wasn’t able to be with him,” Michelle said.

Michelle said that complications during her delivery – specifically, Ryan’s arms were sticking out and he suddenly had no heartbeat – prompted an emergency C-section.

“His heartbeat quit, and they immediately rushed me across the hall,” she said. “I knew I was going to have a C-section.”

The next few days were fuzzy for Michelle.

“He couldn’t come into our room,” she said. “My mom would go take photos of him with her digital camera.”

Ryan was very sick. At one point, they almost had to life flight him.

“He had some trouble breathing,” she said. “I didn’t know any of this until the third day. I know one of the nurses told me that I had a sick little baby for a little while.”

Michelle said that last month, she was telling her children the stories of the days they were born.

When she told Ryan his story, he wanted to meet Snider.

“I was just telling a story,” she said. “I didn’t expect him to ask me that. We did some checking and found out she still works at the hospital.”

On Tuesday, the Lees traveled to Andalusia to meet Snider.

“It was really amazing,” she said.