In these trying times, we hope to give you a glimpse of some ordinary people doing extraordinary things. There are many. Here is just one story.
Deanna Pratt describes herself as ‘just a stay-at-home mom, wife, and granny.’ But in the middle of the Covid-19 crisis, she’s stepped up to help give hospital health care workers, those currently on the front line of this battle, some needed support.
It began with a FaceBook posting to her Matthewstown Run neighborhood: “Would our community be interested in showing our support to the employees of Easton Memorial. We could adopt a department and purchase (example: pastries from Turnbridge bakery or pizzas from one of our local pizza joints, bagels from the Bagery) and have them delivered.”
Pratt is no stranger to the hospital environment. She used to work in a lab, as did her father until he retired. Her stepmom is the infection control nurse at the Easton and Cambridge Hospital. “Talking to my dad,” Pratt said, “I know how exhausted she is, getting calls in the middle of the night, working nonstop at the hospital. I could only imagine how everyone else is also feeling.” She knew that every department is affected, not just the nurses.
Something needed to be done. “Listening to the news, I started thinking, some of us are sitting home, why not do something to show appreciation for what they’re probably going through right now.” That’s when she got the idea to post on her neighborhood’s FaceBook page. And that’s when the community turned out with donations.
Since several nurses live in her community, a decision was made to adopt 3 East as the lucky recipients of the first delivery. Pratt then contacted Turnbridge Talbot Bakery Café on Goldsborough St. about buying their cookies and pastries.
When asked if she hoped to get a special price or even a donation from the bakery, she said she didn’t even consider it. Her hope is not only to support the hospital workers, but also the local pizza shops, restaurants, and coffee shops, who are suffering as well.
If all goes as planned, Pratt hopes that others will consider doing the same the same. “Maybe other neighborhoods,” she said, “like Cooke’s Hope, Easton Club and Easton Club East, Stony Ridge, and Mulberry Station might want to adopt a department and raise money. Maybe we could cover the entire hospital floors. Maybe we can expand this to nursing homes.”
If you know someone who is making a difference, let us know.
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