ENGLEWOOD, Colo. — Every Friday, the halls of Swedish Medical Center in Englewood are filled with the music of one pianist. It's not what you might expect a hospital to sound like — and that's the point.
86-year-old Aldah Medsker performs in the lobby at 11:30 in the morning, for about 90 minutes. She doesn't do it for money— she does it for the love of playing.
"I'm 86 years old and I feel 20," remarked Medsker. "It's adding years to my life and life to my years."
Medsker's husband was treated at Swedish before he died 10 years ago. After his death, she says she threw herself into her music— specifically playing to brighten the dark days that a hospital often sees.
"It makes the hospital seem like just a little bit happier place," said Bridget Engle, a staff member at Swedish Medical Center. "Even if just for a few minutes."
Medsker has put in more than 550 hours on that piano bench — just part of the reason why the staff thought it was time to say thank you with this week's Denver7 Everyday Hero award.
Watch the sweet moment in the video below.
Denver7 features a different Everyday Hero each week. To nominate a hero in your life, click here.