ROME On an icy evening last month, Akas Kazi, a 35-year-old originally from Bangladesh, huddled under a blanket in the portico of one of Romes main post offices, as Red Cross volunteers distributed hot meals of pasta and tea.
Working in a restaurant kitchen had barely paid the bills, but after the restaurant closed six months ago yet another casualty of the pandemic Mr. Kazi found himself living on the street. No work, no money for rent, he said.
Job searches had been fruitless: Theres nothing, he said. And even sleeping on friends couches was not an option. Everyone has problems because of Covid.
The winter has been especially hard: Since November, 12 homeless people have died on the streets of Rome, where a growing number of people have ended up because of the coronavirus pandemic.
But even as the need increases, those in Rome who care for the homeless are challenged by restrictions put in place to keep people healthy, like those that require beds to be a certain distance apart.
Capacity at overnight shelters dropped sharply, and managing Romes so-called cold strategy for the winter months was more complicated this year, said Alberto Farneti, who runs a homeless assistance program for the Rome branch of the Catholic charity Caritas.
The 200 beds at his shelter at Romes Termini train station have dropped to 60. Many local parishes that once offered bunk beds in back rooms to the homeless during the coldest months are not doing so this year.
Its a question of protection, said Marco Pavani, a volunteer at a shelter for older homeless men inside the Church of San Calisto, run by the Community of St. Egidio, a Catholic charity. Capacity there fell to 10 beds from 30, after wooden partitions were erected between the cots to ensure social distancing.
Numbers for Romes homeless population vary widely; Caritas estimates that some 7,700 people are on the streets. Some social workers put the number at almost twice that. For City Hall, those are absurd numbers and dont reflect reality, said Veronica Mamm, the municipal councilor in charge of social services, who estimated the number of homeless at closer to 3,000.
Daniele Archibugi of the Institute for Research on Population and Social Policies, Italian Research Council, who is studying the financial impact of the pandemic in Italy, noted that many Italians work in the countrys informal economy and are not recorded, so one of the problems is to find and reach them.
That means those people do not get aid, making them especially vulnerable, he said.
Ms. Mamms department has a round-the-clock operations center that monitors the number of free beds in shelters, and covers the cost of 40,000 meals a month dished out in soup kitchens.
The department also sponsors rapid virus testing sites for the homeless. But she said in an interview that regional health codes have made it more difficult for us to put people into shelters. She added, We have the funds and are constantly looking for new shelters, but the coronavirus and the need to limit numbers hasnt helped.
March 8, 2021, 10:38 a.m. ET
To help allay some concerns, the Caritas center at Termini Station is serving as an isolation shelter, repeatedly testing its guests, who must remain there for 10 days before they are sent to other refuges.
Of the 200 men who have passed through the shelter in the past month, only one tested positive. Its almost miraculous, said Mr. Farneti. (There is some anecdotal evidence that the isolated lives of homeless people make them less vulnerable to the virus.)
After 10 p.m., when the nationwide curfew kicks in, Rome becomes a ghost city, something surreal that we Romans have never seen before, said Debora Diodati, the president of Romes Red Cross. And the homeless suffer because bars and restaurants are closed so its more difficult to find food.
To provide more food, volunteer groups there are several dozen in Rome, including neighborhood associations have added more shifts. The downtown Red Cross team averages around 180 meals per shift, prepared in a field kitchen normally used during emergencies, like earthquakes. It began operating when a national lockdown was imposed last March.
Soup-kitchen dining areas have been closed by the pandemic, and the homeless are given bag meals, even when its cold or rainy. Their living conditions, which werent great, have gotten worse, said Michele Ferraris, spokesman for an association that lobbies for the rights of the homeless.
Twice a week, and more often when its cold, the Red Cross team brings food and blankets, as well as face masks and hand sanitizer, to those whom Emiliano Loppa, a volunteer coordinator, described as Romes most isolated people. They live downtown in makeshift camps under the bridges along the Tiber River, under porticos and even in the nooks of ancient ruins.
For years, Pietro, 66, who asked that his last name not be used because he was ashamed of being homeless, eked out a living as an unofficial parking valet at a hospital. But his income dried up last March after the hospital restricted visitors. He spent 10 months sleeping at Termini Station, before finding a spot at the San Calisto church. Sleeping at the station, alongside hundreds of other homeless, was frightening, he said.
Another guest at San Calisto, Antonino, 61, ran out of money after losing his job last year and ended up on the street. After three months living under a bridge, he found refuge at the St. Egidio shelter, where he feels secure. Theyll never send us back out on the streets, he said.
Ms. Diodati of the Rome Red Cross said her groups had seen an increase in women on the streets, mainly because of the drop in shelter beds, though the numbers remained considerably lower than those of men. Normally women tend to find hospitality, she said.
On a recent Sunday, Maria, a Ukranian woman who used to work as a cleaner, picked up a lunch bag offered by St. Egidio after a Mass. People are afraid to hire me because I have to take public transportation and risk exposure to the virus, she said.
Were coming across people who only arrived on the streets a few months ago, said Massimiliano Signifredi, a volunteer with St. Egidio. Each January and February, St. Egidio celebrates special Masses commemorating the homeless people who have died on the streets, including Modesta Valenti, who became something of an icon when she died in 1983 after an ambulance refused to transport her.
Over the past year, the number of homeless people has clearly increased, Mr. Signifredi said. with a housing crisis adding to the problem, even though the government made evictions illegal during the state of emergency. We have said that the pandemic unleashed the poverty of the penultimate those who barely made it to the end of the month and now cant make it to the 10th, so they come to us or Caritas, he said.
St. Egidio has opened several new dormitories and also drafted an agreement with a hotel whose rooms had been empty since the pandemic began. But its not enough. Weve asked authorities to react more quickly to emergencies, because the emergency was not going away anytime soon, he said.
The kind of poverty has changed, said Claudio Campani, a coordinator of the Forum for Street Volunteers, an umbrella group for some 50 associations that assist Romes homeless. Now you have the so-called new poor who go to live in their cars before ending up on the street. And while many homeless people are immigrants, the number of Italians has increased, he said.
For Mr. Pavani, the year has been one long cautionary tale.
The thread that binds us to normality is so fine that it can take very little loss of work, a weakness, a separation for that thread to break and for us to fall and lose our life story and roots, he said.
His symptoms began while he was on a deer hunting trip in western North Dakota with members of his family.
He was able to return to his north Moorhead home before the symptoms got bad. Soon, however, his fever spiked to 104 degrees and he was bedridden.
Id shake so bad I couldnt control myself, he said. I couldnt do anything.
He went to a testing center in the former Thomas Edison Elementary School and the news came back with the expected diagnosis that he had COVID-19.
The 85-year-olds condition continued to deteriorate. He went to the emergency room in November, when cases were at their peak, and was sent home. A few days later, he went back, and this time was admitted to the COVID-19 unit at Sanford Broadway Medical Center.
That was on Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving the beginning of a health crisis that would keep him hospitalized for 67 days.
He would shed 42 pounds from his 180-pound frame. One of his lungs would collapse. He refused to be placed on a ventilator.
I was at the point of no return at one time, he said.
And he survived, thanks to a strong will to live and the care received from multiple teams of dedicated doctors and nurses, his family believes.
Hes literally been to hell and back, his son Tim Poehls said.
But surviving COVID-19 is one thing. Regaining your life, after becoming severely weakened from spending weeks in a series of hospital beds with a body ravaged by the virus, is another.
At the COVID-19 unit at Sanford Broadway Medical Center, doctors repeatedly told Harlen Poehls that his best chance for recovery would be to go on a ventilator to help him breathe.
Your options are next to nothing, he said, recalling his doctors advice.
But each time, Poehls refused.
They had experimented with a type of helmet designed to deliver oxygen and help patients breathe, but Poehls couldnt tolerate the device and pulled it off.
I totally freaked out, he said. I was very high with anxiety at the time. I didnt know what was going to happen. It was ruling me. I said if I dont make it, I dont make it. It was my choice.
The isolation that is required to treat highly infectious COVID-19 patients was difficult for his father, and Tim Poehls believes that is why his condition continued to deteriorate in the hospital.
Dad is a very social guy, he said. The problem is they couldnt be with their families.
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Still, he said the care his father received was second to none. COVID-19 patients often have their ups and downs, and that was the case with Harlen.
When he was no longer infectious, he was moved out of the COVID-19 ward and into intensive care.
At the low point, Poehls believed he was dying. We were talking about hospice and palliative care, his son said. Thats how bad it was.
But Poehls rebounded and was transferred to Vibra Hospital of Fargo, a long-term acute care hospital located inside Sanford Medical Center, to continue to recuperate. While there, his family met with a team at the Post Acute Medical (PAM) Rehabilitation Hospital of Fargo, a rehabilitation center.
We believe he can do it, because he really wants to go home, Tim Poehls said, recalling the evaluation to determine his father's rehab potential.
When he entered the rehab hospital, Harlen Poehls was confined to a wheelchair. During almost two months of being bedridden, his body had weakened severely. The 42 pounds hed lost included much of his muscle mass.
He would have to regain the ability to walk and take care of himself. Even the simplest tasks, like taking a shower while standing up, were beyond his ability.
When he got here, he really couldnt do anything, said Sarah Nordin, chief of therapy at PAM Hospital. In the beginning, we helped him get dressed.
The therapists at PAM Hospital worked with Poehls in a series of progressive therapies that gradually rebuilt his body. He walked the hallways. He rode a stationary bicycle. He climbed stairs.
Exercises strengthened his core as well as his arms and legs. We targeted certain muscle groups so it all came together, Nordin said.
Poehls could feel his strength returning. You would walk a little further each day, he said. You could see the progress each day.
Jonah Joyce, a physical therapist who worked with Poehls, credited his grit and determination.
He was hardworking, he had a good drive, Joyce said. Although extremely weak at the beginning, he was one of the best candidates because he was so hardworking.
COVID-19 patients often have shortness of breath and a severe level of deconditioning, requiring long courses of rehabilitation, Nordin and Joyce said.
Hospital rehabilitation stays for COVID-19 can range from seven or 10 days up to two or three months, Nordin said. It just depends how quickly they can bounce back.
Some COVID-19 patients come to rehab after spending two or three months on a ventilator. They take longer, she said.
On Jan. 31, after 67 days of hospitalization, including 11 days of rehab, Harlen Poehls walked out of PAM Hospital and got into his sons waiting SUV.
He was driven to Tim Poehls home near Wolverton, Minn., where he could receive help in the early days of his recovery outside the hospital.
His first day out of the hospital was a Sunday. On Monday, Tim Poehls and his wife went to work and Harlen managed well on his own.
He came back fast, Tim Poehls said. For about two weeks, Harlen Poehls has been back at home, managing by himself as he continues to regain strength and endurance.
It was a very good relief just to relax at home, Harlen Poehls said. I could sleep, relax. Its just a whole different situation.
Its a miracle, Tim Poehls said. We really believed we were going to lose him.
Harlen Poehls never really retired. He spent his career working as a truck driver. After retiring at the age of 71, he became bored after a few weeks and started working for Tims construction business, delivering materials and supplies, and helping out in other ways.
In fact, he still has a commercial drivers license allowing him to drive an 18-wheeler and had worked right up until he got sick with COVID-19 in November.
He has an exercise bike that he uses to continue his rehab at home. Hes slowly regaining weight and strength.
The muscle isnt there that it used to be, he said.
Since returning home, Harlen Poehls has a new outlook on life, having survived such a trying ordeal.
Hes got a different zip in his step, his son said. Hes a different guy and its a positive.
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ASUNCIN/LIMA (Reuters) - Sandra Contreras, camped outside Limas Villa el Salvador hospital, is running out of funds to pay for her mothers COVID-19 treatment, a sign of thin welfare systems around Latin America that are dragging many into debt and poverty.
FILE PHOTO: Eurenice Melo, 87, who suffers from coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is helped by a nurse and her daughter, Cintia Melo, 50, at her home in Manaus, Brazil March 2, 2021. REUTERS/Bruno Kelly
I have pawned all my things, Contreras, 34, told Reuters between tears outside the hospital, where she has set up a hammock as she waits for news of her mother, infected amid a resurgence of coronavirus cases in the Andean nation.
I said to my siblings: What do I care if we have to sell the house to save my mother? We are going to do it.
Latin America, where countries are seeing a mix of reopening and new waves of COVID-19, has been hard hit by the pandemic, with 22 million people pushed into poverty and weak social safety nets, an annual U.N. report said on Thursday.
It said the number in extreme poverty was at a level not seen for 20 years, and it pointed to deep structural inequalities, a sprawling informal labor market and a lack of effective health care coverage - meaning many people end up paying for treatment out of pocket.
In Paraguay, that has sparked a wave of informal fundraising, with bake sales and short-term loans as family members seek to meet the costs of medical care.
Mirta Gonzlez, a 34-year-old manicurist from a small town in southern Paraguay, took an express loan when her husband Jess got sick and was transferred to the capital Asuncion. She spent 6.5 million guarani ($985) on medications and supplies.
Family and friends organized raffles and sold pizzas to raise more funds.
Here without contacts or money you will die, Gonzlez told Reuters while waiting to be called by a loudspeaker to deliver medicine to her husband at INERAM, the main COVID-19 treatment center in the country.
In the landlocked country of some seven million people only around one in five have social security and heath cover via their jobs, and only around 7% pay for private cover, government data show. Free state care is open for all but is very limited.
ABSOLUTELY NO BEDS
In the Brazilian city of Manaus, where a surge in COVID-19 case in January led to a collapse in public health services, Cintia Melo was forced to look after her 87-year-old mother at home, hiring carers and a ventilator, and renting or buying oxygen cylinders.
There were absolutely no hospital beds at all, the freelance video producer said by telephone. She said it was costing about 20,000 reais ($3,553) a month and, even though her mother was now recovering, she would still need care for several more weeks, maybe months.
The costs havent finished yet, Melo said.
Vernica Serafini, an economic researcher in Paraguay, said health expenses were the main driver pushing people into debt and this would snarl a revival of growth after the pandemic eased, key as the commodities-rich region looks to bounce back.
Instead of investing in a house, business or education, we are getting into debt for health. And theres no possibility of growth if people lose assets when they get sick, she said.
A BLOW NO-ONE WAS PREPARED FOR
The wave of indebtedness comes as millions of Latin American families grieve loved ones who died during the pandemic. The region has recorded more than 687,000 confirmed COVID-19 deaths, a Reuters tally shows, second only to the death toll in Europe.
Renata Granados, 24, and her family in Quertaro, Mexico, were forced to sell the family pick-up truck in a raffle after her sister Paloma got infected and died after 21 days in hospital. The bill was 7 million Mexican pesos (about $330,000).
The expenses were very large when she was in the hospital and we had to find a way to raise funds, said Granados, who herself is training to be a doctor. She said her sister had been an inspiration.
I feel like it was a blow that no one was prepared for.
The report last week by the U.N.s Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean said that in addition to rising poverty the pandemic had caused growing social tensions.
But it said things would be worse without measures taken by Latin American governments to transfer emergency income to some 84 million households, or about half the population.
The commissions executive secretary, Alicia Brcena, said people were living through heightened uncertainty due to the pandemic and that it is necessary to build back with equality and sustainability, aiming to create a true welfare state, a task long postponed in the region.
Back in Peru, 26-year-old Yoselin Marticorena waited outside the Villa el Salvador hospital for news about her father. Her mother and sister also had COVID-19 symptoms and she said there was no one left to help support her.
I dont know what to do, I truly sold everything already, she said amid pitched tents outside the hospital. I already got into debt. I have no one else to ask for help.
Reporting by Daniela Desantis in Asuncion, Carlos Valdez in Lima, Carlos Carrillo in Quertaro, Mexico, and Stephen Eisenhammer in Sao Paulo; Editing by Adam Jourdan and Daniel Wallis
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SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WWLP) Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno along with city health officials provided an update on the citys response to COVID-19 Monday morning.
Watch live at 10:15 a.m.
Mayor Sarno joined with the following people at 10:15 a.m.:
Springfield is still listed as a high risk community for COVID-19. There are 881 COVID-19 cases reported in Springfield over the last 14 days bringing the total of cases to 17,730 as of Thursday March, 4.
Posted: Mar 8, 2021 / 10:23 AM EST / Updated: Mar 8, 2021 / 10:23 AM EST
The Erie County Department of Health is reporting 29 new positive cases of COVID-19 as of 11:59 p.m. on March 7.
Over the weekend, the county reported 27 new cases as of 11:59 p.m. on March 5, and 19 new cases as of 11:59 p.m. on March 6. Two new deaths were also reported over the weekend.
The cumulative total in the county now stands at 17,645, with 444 total deaths (reported in NEDSS). There are 62,329 negatives reported.
The next news conference will take place Wednesday, March 10 at 3 p.m. Watch live on Jet 24, Fox 66, YourErie.com, or the YourErie 2Go App.
She died less than two months after beginning her career as a correctional officer.
BEAUMONT, Texas A Southeast Texas correctional officer who had just begun her career in January has become the latest TDCJ employee to die in connection to the coronavirus.
Tracey Adams, 45, died early Saturday morning after being hospitalized with COVID-19 for nearly a month according to a news release from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
Adams, who was a correctional officer III cadet at the Stiles Unit in Beaumont, had been a TDCJ employee for less than two months the release said. She began her career with the department on January 19, 2021.
She tested positive for COVID-19 after showing symptoms on February 11, 2021 and was hospitalized the next day according to the release.
She dedicated herself completely to that service and for that we are grateful, TDCJ executive director Bryan Collier said of her new career with the department.
Once you join the TDCJ family you are a part of that family and we are in this together. We hold the Adams family in our prayers this day. Know that Ms. Adams will be missed and remembered, he said.
Adams is the 43rd TDCJ employee to die due to the coronavirus according to the release.
This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
From a Texas Department of Criminal Justice news release
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is grieving the loss of an employee that is connected to the COVID-19 virus.
45-year-old Correctional Officer III Cadet Tracey Adams had two months of service with the TDCJ and was assigned to The Stiles Unit in Beaumont. Adams began her career with the TDCJ on January 19, 2021. She tested positive for COVID-19 after having symptoms on February 11, 2021. She was hospitalized In a Beaumont area hospital the next day. Tracey Adams died in the morning hours of March 6, 2021.
Tracey Adams was beginning a new career with the TDCJ family, said TDCJ Executive Director Bryan Collier. She dedicated herself completely to that service and for that we are grateful. Once you join the TDCJ family you are a part of that family and we are in this together. We hold the Adams family in our prayers this day. Know that Ms. Adams will be missed and remembered.
Officer Adams was very determined and driven to succeed. She told us she wanted to be the best officer she could be, said TDCJ Training and Leader Development Division Director David Yebra. Starting a new career can be difficult but she took on that challenge head on and full steam. Our hope is that her family finds comfort in this difficult time knowing she chose to serve.
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has had forty-three employees who have died in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Also on 12NewsNow.com
NEW YORK (WJW) Medical researchers are testing a new medication that could be used to treat COVID-19.
During a Sunday morning interview on FOX & Friends, Dr. Marc Siegel revealed that officials are in the first stage of testing an experimental COVID-19 pill called Molnupiravir.
It may be the holy grail on this because it was just studied in phase two trials and it literally stopped the virus in its tracks, he said during the interview. And there wasnt any virus found in the patients that were studied.
Dr. Siegel told the news outlet that the drug has shown promising signs of effectiveness in reducing COVID-19.
Molnupiravir reportedly functions as a five-day, at-home treatment. It would be used to stop the coronavirus from reproducing before causing major damage.
It is possible that Molnupiravir could be available on the market within four to five months.
Related video: More than 40 people given coronavirus treatment instead of vaccine
From a new bird watcher spotting a snowy owl, to finding solace in meditation or family time and daily movie nights, many people shared similar positive changes in their life that have been spurred by the coronavirus pandemic.
We asked Boston.com readers to reflect back with us on the past year since the COVID-19 outbreak began in Massachusetts, and share any of the possible positive impacts it has had on your life.
And you responded.
I work in healthcare and doing direct work with COVID-19 patients has been very traumatizing and scary and exhausting. Ive seen a lot of people suffer and die and Ive shed so many tears. My silver lining is that my husband and I are both essential workers and weve been lucky enough to keep our income so weve continued to pay my federal student loans at 0% interest this whole time, one reader shared. This has been HUGE for paying down debt and getting us into a financial position where we decided we could afford another baby. Im due in July!
In a realization that life is too short, and that it could be years before a big wedding would be safe, one couple got engaged and decided on an intimate 20-person outdoor ceremony. It was perfect, Anna, of Cambridge, said.
Many people said they found opportunities to explore the outdoors or create a better work-life balance, while others saved time no longer needing to commute on the T, traveling through traffic or long distances for their job.
A few readers also said they experienced zero positive changes in the last year.
Nothing positive at all for me, Ernie, from Bridgewater, wrote. If anything, Im getting somewhat depressed (winter contributes to that).
Another said there were very few upsides for them, but shared a new hobby they had picked up:
As a mom to three young children that barely go to school I cant say there have been many pandemic gains for my family, Kellie, of Quincy, said. I did however buy myself my first pair of roller skates. Im 38 and I can do shoot the duck!
A few people noted they were able to get more sleep, implement healthier eating habits from home-cooking, and took up new hobbies like biking, playing guitar, or quilting to help make the deprivations of the virus a little easier to manage.
One reader detailed how the pandemic and the shift to working from home allowed them the chance to spend the last three months of their Great Danes life together.
He lived out the end of his life happy with his favorite humans catering to his every need and keeping him comfortable and comforted day and night, they shared. The pandemic likely extended his life by months.
Below, find 7 other stories from fellow readers sharing their most uplifting aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
I finally quit the job that had been sucking the life out of me for 12 years without having another job lined up. Got a call for an interview the very next day. Started a new job at the bottom of the barrel, was promoted twice in less than 4 months and now Im an office manager. Since I wasnt traveling 2+ hours each way to Boston for work anymore, I was able to go for bike rides or hikes every day after work. I started hiking every weekend. My favorite thing has been doing solo sunrise hikes. I feel proud of myself, and happy again. Alana, Westford
The pandemic gave me the perfect cover to leave a toxic marriage. I had been wanting to leave for quite some time, but was too fearful to pull the trigger. Since I am immune-compromised and my ex-husband works at a job thats high-risk for covid, it gave me the perfect excuse and push I needed to move out of our home, and from there, tell him the marriage was over. Since I had to self-quarantine during the peak of the pandemic, it was nearly impossible to jump into a rebound relationship and/or meet anyone new. Therefore, a second silver lining came in the form of forcing me to take the time to reflect, heal, and learn the necessary lessons to grow and evolve in a way that would lead me to healthier relationships moving forward. As tragic as 2020 was, there were so many nuggets of goodness that propelled me forward mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. For that, I am grateful. Emilie
I got to spend time with my two-year-old son that I never would have gotten unless I had quit my jobs. Im a teacher and work multiple jobs throughout the school year. While pandemic teaching has been a nightmare (for students and teachers), the time I got to spend with my toddler was indelible. We explored about twenty state parks and beaches and I got to see my son grow and develop during a time when he would typically have been in daycare. While the pandemic had many times of sorrow and loneliness, this will always be something I look back on fondly. Abby, Abington
The work from home order as a result of COVID was job & sanity-saving for me. In March 2020, I started having health symptoms that required frequent, urgent bathroom access. Throughout the summer, I was hospitalized 4 times to treat and diagnose my disease (Crohns) and throughout that, I was able to work from home and still complete my job. If the Pre-COVID work rules had been in place, I would have had to be on long-term leave or had to quit, and this work would have not been done. I appreciate the extra time I have that previously a commute from the suburbs to Boston took up, and I have been able to have less stress due to no commute. Having never worked close to home before, I was able to appreciate being home soon after the end of the workday. That extra time is memorable and cherished. I can get extra rest needed due to my disease, spend more time with my spouse just talking, and more time to do a craft like crochet or cross-stitch. These are moments I would not have had pre-Covid. Catherine Stochaj, Lowell
Its 8:45 on Monday morning. My husband and I just finished our workout in what used to be our sunroom, but is now our home gym. I just got my kids school day started in what used to be our playroom but is now their classroom. Theyre both logged on to Google Meet, while their masked teachers are in the real classrooms with this weeks in-person cohort, starting their day with a virtual morning meeting. A few minutes later, as Im making my first coffee of the day, my husband comes downstairs dressed in a suit jacket, dress shirt, tieand shorts. He casually flashes me a smile as he walks into his home office to begin his court hearing. My kids start asking me for a snack when it dawns on me: over the past few months my home has turned into a Gym, Court of law, Elementary School, and Restaurant. It all happened pretty gradually, so it didnt hit me until this morning just how multi-functional our home has actually become. And how grateful I am for it, and for all the little things I used to take for granted. How lucky are we that during this scary and horrible time in the world, our home is able to provide a place not only for comfort, but also for work, school, strength, and sustenance? I have always been a homebody, and that has certainly been exacerbated since the pandemic began. But now, when I talk to someone in person rather than over text, I really appreciate it more than I would have in the past. I ran into a friend at Target this weekend, and even though we spoke to each other at a distance and with our masks on, it really filled my cup just to catch up and make eye contact, even if it was only for a few minutes. Although I will say that if I spend more than an hour outside my house these days, I need a full day to recover from the outing. And so Ive been working on renovating all of the spaces in our home, and now I can honestly say that if we are put on lockdown again this winter, I wont be mad about it. Kissy Rakhlin
I began an early morning writing practice back in April, and this led to my blog and then a weekly column in the Sudbury Town Crier (started 6 wks ago). This month [February] seemed especially hard for people, so I started a #joyburst challenge to build a community where people can share positive moments throughout their day. I have written about these moments which I call joy bursts. I share these #joybursts on my Instagram and now have a private Facebook group that has picked up a lot of traction. I work as the Director of Alumnae Relations for the Dana Hall School, so this project is in my limited free time. But I think it is important to help each other highlight the bright spots in our days and share them with each other. Samantha Greenfield, of Sudbury
I am the founder of a non-profit called Tommys Place. I am in the process of renovating a former historic inn into a vacation home for kids that are fighting cancer. When the pandemic first hit back in March it was devastating for us for several months. Fundraising had completely dried up and there was nothing that we could do to change that because people suddenly had other priorities including their own survival. Then in August, I changed course from fundraising to actual construction with the belief that if we started building they would come. Ever since, the outpouring of support has been nothing short of astounding! We have received over $500K in financial donations and at least $750K in in-kind materials and labor donations. Its nothing short of a complete miracle turnaround and we are so grateful for every business and individual that has stepped up to support us. Covid-19 has given ordinary people an opportunity to do extraordinary things and we are so appreciative that they have chosen us to be the beneficiary! Tim OConnell
Responses have been edited for length and clarity.
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