My Covid Hero- Lilli Wiegand

 

Every person has someone or something that they see as their hero. Whether it be a Disney character for little kids, your parents, veterans, an athlete. But this year with all it has brought, it has shed light on who our real heroes are, especially this pandemic. Nurses, doctors, all healthcare workers have experienced something no one ever could have imagined happening. All these healthcare workers across the world deserve to be looked at as heroes. And I have the honor to know a nurse, my aunt who has been through this pandemic just like all other healthcare workers have. 

My Aunt Olivia is a nurse at Hackensack Meridian Hospital, and before Covid was a nurse on the oncology floor. Working on this floor, dealing with and treating patients daily who are suffering from cancer is already a job that is important and valued. But when this pandemic hit my aunt was one of the first to be moved on the Covid floor daily. She described this as something that came out of a movie, something that no one would believe is real unless you were in it. The cafeteria where she would sit with her friends and enjoy lunch now was filled with beds and ventilators for patients. She could barely recognize her coworkers with all of the protective equipment they had to wear. This pandemic was something no one could have prepared for, but these healthcare workers never let anything stop them from doing their job. 

In class, we learned about what makes someone a hero, and the characteristics they have. Bravery. My aunt showed bravery every day as she stepped into the hospital, risking her life to treat people that are suffering from the virus. Determination. She was determined to do everything possible to treat the patients the best she could when no one really knew what actually helped. Helpful. She would sit with patients when they didn't have much time left, holding their phones so they could talk to their family one last time. 

Not only my aunt but all the healthcare workers in the world who have worked during Covid have shown all of these characteristics, making them true heroes. But most importantly these people have been inspirational to the whole world. They showed people when the world was a very dark place, to keep pushing through and that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Every single nurse, doctor, healthcare worker are true heroes, and my aunt has been my personal hero through all of this.