Ali Dennis Guillermo, a nurse at Long Island Community Hospital, died on April 7 after contracting Covid-19. He was hailed as a selfless father and compassionate health care provider.
Guillermo, 44, of East Patchogue, came to Long Island from the Philippines in 2004 to provide a better upbringing for his family, wife Romielyn said. She said the hospital in East Patchogue was recruiting nurses from their country at the time.
“In the Philippines, the big dream is to come to the U.S.,” Romielyn said in a telephone interview. “That’s how we could help our family, especially financially.”
Guillermo, the second known nurse on Long Island to have died amid the Covid-19 pandemic, met his wife at nursing school in the Philippines and quickly made his mark among his new health care colleagues on Long Island.
“Everyone who ever worked with him loved him,” said Cathy Santacroce-Worwetz, a 29-year nurse at LICH. “He was always there with a helping hand if you needed him. He made us laugh. He loved life.”
Guillermo earned a reputation among his colleagues for making the overnight shifts go quickly, thanks to his fun-loving, upbeat attitude and willingness to do more than his share of work.
“Ali was the most thorough, gentle, kindest, funniest nurse I ever had the pleasure to work with,” nurse Kassandra Cozier said.
He loved to sing, dance — and take the workload off others.
Newsday