GRH says thank you to our community with a special tribute video

Transcript for: Thank you, Waterloo Region: a message to the community from Grand River Hospital

Carol: When it first started, it was hard to believe it was actually going to progress to the point we are now

KerriLee: I worked here in 2003 when we had SARs, and that was my first reaction is: ‘uh oh, it’s back’

Rondi: Is this pandemic for real and how long is this going to last?

Evelyn: So much speculation of ‘this is going to happen’ so, it was pretty uneasy situation

KerriLee: Yes, when you’re in a hospital this is, you have to in the back of your mind know that we face these things everyday

Carol: Once we got our first case here, you saw the roll-out begin, and the meetings begin, and the planning begin

Marilyn: It seemed to change every, everyday there was something new

Anne: Just the volume of everything was overwhelming

Anne: The support from the community has been just amazing

Tuzee: It makes you smile that people actually care. It was nice to see the blue ribbons outside, the meals donated.

Josh: Just walking to work and seeing some of the children would put chalk on the sidewalk saying, you know, ‘thank you hospital workers’. Seeing all the signs saying Our Heroes Wear Scrubs.

Anne: The little painted rocks at the entrances to the doors, um, just keep reminding you how much the community has supported us

Marilyn: Everywhere I went there was always signs or homemade signs in windows

KerriLee: Little notes and the sayings. You could drive through the city and they were everywhere. You knew that the community was supporting you

Tuzee: I know some communities had the noisemaking in the evening around 7 o’clock. So that was really nice and I know a lot of people needed it going home at that time or coming back in.

Wyatt: A lot of places were donating food. It was nice because I didn’t have to worry as often about thinking ahead of time to making my meals. Especially when I’m working, 5,6,7 shifts in a row.

Florence: It was just touching, all the lunches that were given.
Carol: It was nice to know there were people out there thinking of us as we worked away in here because we had long days.

Marilyn: It was just amazing to see how much effort people put in to making other people feel better. Knowing there’s other people in the same predicament as you are.

Josh: We saw the mom and pop shops donate their masks, their gloves. Individual citizens donate anything that they can.

Marilyn: The community has donated so much to the hospital. I don’t think we’d be in the position we are right now if we didn’t have the community to help us.

Text – Waterloo Region, you have supported us by:

Purchasing: 7720 #KwStaysHomeShirts; 3969 Our Heroes Wear Scrubs lawn signs; 4282 coffees for staff; $46,495 worth of meals for staff;
Donating: $138,000 worth of meals; $300,000 for PPE and supplies

In return we can only say…

Groups: Thank you, Waterloo Region!

Thank you for being there for us while we were here for you

You gave us the courage, strength, and passion to keep going.

Thank you, Waterloo Region
Featuring the single “Shine” by GRH nurse, Tuzee Arndt