Man brought smiles to hospice nurses before death

A woman explained the story behind the viral video of her brother going on a walk and having fun with the nurses during his final days in hospice before his death.
In an Instagram video shared by Marcella Brown of Austin, Texas, recently, her late brother Omar Mamoe can be seen sitting in a wheelchair as he was about to exit his room accompanied by the nurses who entertained him by rapping to a song, “It Was a Good Day,” by Ice Cube.
The clip, which has garnered over 5 million views, was taken eight days before Mamoe died, showing how he kept his spirits high and brought smiles to those around him.
Speaking to “Good Morning America,” Brown said she shared the video last month because she was feeling sad at the time, thinking about her late brother.
“The video came up, and it just made me feel happy, and it just reminded me that towards the end of his life, like there were these little moments that were good,” she said.
Recalling the wholesome moment in the video, Brown shared that her brother “didn’t like being cooped up” in his room, adding that she, her little sister and Mamoe’s wife kept him company when he was in hospice.
“And I think he was just kind of tired of us but didn’t want to tell us,” she continued with a laugh. “So one of the [nurses] asked if he wanted to go on a walk that day. And he just looked at the nurses, and he was like, ‘Do you guys have time?’ And then, I think it was more like, you know, ‘Can anyone else?’ But he also really loved the nurses that took him on the walk that day. Like he loved them so much, so it was special that they had the time and that they did that and made it so special for him.”
Mamoe was a husband and a father of four kids. He worked as a mail carrier and loved his job, according to Brown. He was diagnosed with appendix cancer in January 2022 and died in August of that year after staying in hospice for 19 days.
Brown said she and Mamoe were really close since they often attended the same schools and shared mutual friends. They even shared a passion for weightlifting.
“He was my little brother, but I always felt like he would take care of me when I needed him to,” she said.
After her brother’s death, Brown turned to Instagram to cope with the loss, connecting with their mutual friends.
“Everyone that is in my circle that I would lean on is also hurting from losing him,” she said. “We’re trying to make him proud, like we often say, like, ‘Omar would love that.’ Or, you know, ‘Omar would think that was so cool.’ We’re just trying to live a life that he would be proud of.”
Brown described Mamoe as “very kind” and said he “loved encouraging other people,” especially at the gym.
“He would always just talk to random strangers and be like, ‘Oh, you did such a good job.’ ‘That was such a good lift.’ So, I always think of him when I’m being kind to someone,” she added.
Brown told “GMA” that she hopes those who watched her video took away the idea that “there are amazing humans in the world.”
“Those nurses, you know, they have a really tough job, and they just made sure that my brother felt love and care and humor all the way to the end,” she said. “I think it’s really important to remember that there’s good in the world, and there’s good people in the world.”