Kids say the most wonderful things.
“Thank you health care worker!”
“I couldn’t even imagine how hard it would be to work through all of this mess. I have it so easy,
all I had to do was wake up and stay home. You had to go to work every single day, throughout
all that is going on, knowing it puts you at risk but still going and saving people’s lives and
helping them get better.”
“Thank you for loving our community so much. Thank you for being awesome.”
“YOU GOT THIS.”
Area elementary and junior high school students recently drew pictures, wrote letters, made cards and even put together a video to thank WellSpan team members for the hard work they are doing during the pandemic.
Fourth-grade students at Falling Spring Elementary School in the Chambersburg Area School District read an article about front-line workers during the pandemic and the Franklin County kids wondered: wouldn’t it be nice if we could do something to thank them?
Let’s make a video!
With the help of their teachers, Jennifer Dalton and Jessica Shatzer, the 35 or so 10-year-olds brainstormed a plan.
“The ideas were just shooting out,” Dalton said, noting the kids suggested things they should say, which the teachers wrote into a script. Then, with their parents pitching in to help them shoot the video on cell phones, the kids took turns reading their lines or holding up signs, resulting in a video called “Operation Holiday Cheer.”
“Some of them have family members who worked at the hospital and they couldn’t wait for their family members to see it,” Dalton said. “Everyone wanted the health care workers to know, ‘We are thinking about you.’ These kids are great. The future is bright. They have good hearts.”
“What these kids did is wonderful!” said Elyse Fisler, chief nursing officer at Chambersburg Hospital. “We can’t thank them enough. This has been a tough few months and this lifts our spirits.”
Three elementary schools in Lancaster County also showed their appreciation by creating homemade cards for team members at WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital. Kids from Denver, Adamstown and Reamstown schools in the Cocalico School District participated in the card drive.
“They were very kid-friendly and said things like, ‘Thank you for everything you are doing,’ “ said Beth Haldeman, assistant to the superintendent for curriculum and instruction, Cocalico School District. “They drew pictures of doctors or nurses.”
The cards were placed in break rooms or on a bulletin board outside the hospital cafeteria, for all to see.
“The cards were so wonderful! They brought tears to my eyes,” said Tina Citro, president of WellSpan Ephrata Community Hospital. “We are so grateful to the students, and our community, for the support they have shown us during these challenging months. It means the world to us.”
At the Red Lion Area School District in York County, media specialist Josh Bell teaches junior high students about ways to use technology, via a class called “Digital Citizenship.” The class was discussing ways to use technology for good, and how they could do this during the pandemic. About 150 students composed letters on their computers, which Bell emailed to some front-line workers at WellSpan York Hospital, after asking colleagues to share contact information.
“I was frankly blown away,” said Lori Clark, WellSpan vice president of the neurosciences service line, who got the email. “The letters were incredible. They talked about how thankful they were for everything that our staff and providers are doing. It was really impressive that these students did such a touching thing for our staff, in such a thoughtful way.”
Here is a sampling of the letters:
“I know how every day you and all your co-workers are risking your guys lives just to keep us safe and to protect us. Every day you help the people who need help and try your best to make us feel better. I know it's hard times right now with COVID and you guys are staying strong and not giving up on us and doing your best to help everyone you guys can. I hope when I get older I can either be a lawyer or doctor just to help the lives of people and feel that rush of happiness when
I save a life and help someone. I am so thankful to have you guys helping us out.”
“Thank you so much for always being willing to risk your own health to take care of others, and thank you for not giving up when it came to these hard times within the pandemic. You have made a great impact in many many lives, not just your patients or co-workers, but in students’ and teachers’ lives as well. I hope you continue to always be the brave, caring, selfless person you are. No matter who you are, I give my thanks to you for never backing down and rolling with the punches of today’s crazy world.”
“I’ll be cheering you and your co-workers on from the side lines. You are a person who's willing to sacrifice it all just for a stranger. And that's the beauty of this, no matter how dark it gets you shine, no matter how hard you hit the ground you get back up, and no matter how hard the virus hits you, you hit back. I know that it must be tough and I have never been through something as hard as this. But remember when everything goes wrong and starts spiraling to the ground and you have all hit rock bottom there's only one way left to go, up.”
Want to send a WellSpan team member a message of hope? Go here.
