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A large thank-you sign dedicated to health care workers decorates the lawn in front of a nursing home on Halton Street in Toronto’s west end.Melissa Tait/The Globe and Mail
Cynthia Gina Simonis
Delta, B.C.
While most of us are being told to stay home and to use social distancing, health care workers are front and centre, taking care of those affected by the COVID-19 virus as well as our senior citizens and those with illnesses at the same time. Thank you!
Bingham King
Montreal
For your kindness, we’ll be forever grateful.
Des Carter
Welland, Ont.
To all of our health care heroes, and particularly those in the Niagara Region (my area): Please know that your dedication, skills and abilities are so very much appreciated in this troubled time. Do your best to stay healthy, and I truly hope much-needed PPE supplies reach you soon. Take care and bless you!
Tierney Milne and Mark Illing
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Mr. Illing and Ms. Milne painted these tributes at a boarded-up Vancouver pub.Photo by Dylan Hamm/Dylan Hamm
Ricardo Colaci
Whitehorse
We cannot thank enough the front-line health workers, from doctors to nurses to admin staff. Equally grateful we are to all other first responders in these times of uncertainty. Thank you!
Elena De Luigi
Timmins, Ont.
Thank you for sacrificing your time, your energy, your safety and your lives for those of us who cannot do the work you do. Your dedication to your patients and to the health of every Canadian is very appreciated. We owe you our lives.
Tiffany Merritt
Toronto
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Ms. Merritt, who works as an art therapist, used tributes to front-line workers as a way to 'bring a smile to people's faces as they walk past' her home in Toronto's Riverside neighbourhood. It also gave her two-year-old daughter, Mavis Partington, something to keep busy with.Melissa Tait/The Globe and Mail/The Globe and Mail
Jennifer Paton
Minden, Ont.
We live in a small town, where I enjoy being on first-name terms with almost all of the doctors, and several of the nurses and support staff are friends and/or former students. I have watched them girding themselves for what may be required, and I’m confident in their preparedness and expertise. Our first case was announced two days ago. I’m so grateful to all of the caring people, in all of the places, who are putting themselves and their families at risk because they know that we can’t get through this without them and their training, skill and compassion.
Grace Dubreuil
Whitby, Ont.
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Courtesy of Grace Dubreuil
Osiah Horst
Cobden, Ont.
We really do appreciate the work you do on the front lines! Without doubt, you are the real heroes of this fight we are in. I try to do my part by staying at home, out of the way – you do your part by joining the fray every day. Daily, many times during the day, we remember you in prayer, thanking God for those dedicated workers and praying that you may remain healthy. We pray for those who have fallen ill. Fight on, brother, fight on, sister. You are not forgotten!
Naz Damji
Richmond Hill, Ont.
The unsung heroes go about discharging their duties daily and no one has time to recognize the contribution they make to the well-functioning society – but NOW is the time to realize and appreciate the work our front-line workers do to keep us safe and healthy, always going above and beyond the expectations, putting their lives at risk for us. It’s never too late to say THANK YOU – we truly appreciate the work you do.
Molly Zavershnik
Mississauga
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Courtesy of family/Courtesy of family
Maria Laurie
Huntsville, Ont.
With evening falling, we stop and say thank you, with each new day we pause and say thank you, with food on our table we stop and say thank you, with news of recoveries, in joy we say thank you, with news of the dead, whether or not we knew them, we pause and in silence we mourn and say thank you. Each one of you on the front lines is carried and supported in our hearts by all of us and we say thank you. May God bless you and keep you safe.
Sarah Hammond
Ottawa
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Courtesy of Sarah Hammond/Courtesy of family
Angela Renwick
Calgary
Dear front-line workers: As a person who is very delicate during this pandemic, I want to thank you so much for literally saving my life. From providing fresh fruit and vegetables and specific times when I can shop, you have made this pandemic more bearable. For those who are doctors and nurses, I thank you for putting yourselves on the line for so many others. You are the heroes. Thank you for all you do every day.
Christy Yu
Hamilton
Thank you for serving our communities! We appreciate your courage. We can only imagine the fear you face every day going to work. Even though we cannot physically be there to support you, we are in this together. I’m doing my part by staying home, informing others on social media and urging those around me to make smart decisions. <3
Rani Gopal
Toronto
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Rani, 6, drew this rainbow outside the employee entrance at Mount Sinai Hospital.Courtesy of family/Courtesy of family
Alim Nathoo
Toronto
We appreciate everything you do! Stay safe and thank you!
Jane Hampson
Ottawa
I wish to thank all our wonderful front-line workers, doctors, nurses, grocery-store clerks, truckers, garbage collectors and others; we could not survive without you. Each Canadian is witness to your daily efforts as you make history in this wonderful land, Canada.
Kayla Whitney
Hamilton
My sister works in public health, and so she has been relocated to be the one who answers the phone when people call the hotline; she is bearing a great emotional burden with such strength. A few of my cousins are nurses and doctors and also raising young families and I cannot imagine the physical and emotional stress and exhaustion they live with daily.
I am a self-employed artist and I am so grateful for the privilege I have of staying home. I wanted to somehow show all the people working so hard for our safety that I see them and appreciate them and I am standing with them.
So I painted this in my front window!
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Courtesy of Kayla Whitney/Courtesy of manufacturer
Jorge Mendez
Calgary
Thank you. You are setting an example for the world to remember what humanity is all about. You guys deserve eternal recognition.
Zubin Gandhi
Mississauga
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Courtesy of Zubin Gandhi
Katie Havens
Cambridge, Ont.
Thank you to everyone who is working tireless hours and risking your lives in order to save mine and other Canadians. I feel safe at home knowing you are doing everything you can do to protect us. I pray for your own health and I have the utmost respect for what you do every day.
Katharine Perry
Halifax
I am so thankful to you all, for your dedication, the great sacrifices you’re making and for the kindness and empathy you manage to keep bringing into this unimaginable situation. My father had to go into the hospital this week for a non-COVID-related heart problem, and even in the midst of all the preparations that the amazing staff were making, they still found a way to give him expert, brilliant care that saved his life. Our entire society is beyond grateful.
Jonathan Tan
Oshawa, Ont.
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Courtesy of Jonathan Tan/Courtesy of family
Yvonne Tagoe
Toronto
WARRIORS
It’s peacetime But they work in a war zone Healthcare workers In gowns, masks, gloves, goggles Back and forth Around gurneys, beds, ventilators With the dedication Of Florence Nightingale In a beehive of activity Eyes expressionless Behind airtight googles Nurses exchange brief glances Then on to the next patient Keeping track Hoping for positive signs Monitors beep amid the heavy silence In a battle for the life of patients Some hang on Others lose the battle Families at home Anxious for news The phone rings The doctor delivers the news in a monotone A family breaks down Shattered Back in the war zone More work to do Back in the war zone A shift ends Gear peeled off Time to scrub down and head home Exhausted warriors emerge from the trenches A silent prayer on their lips That the unseen enemy is scrubbed off And not following them home In the empty streets The sound of silence is pierced By the sound of sirens Another ambulance arrives
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A thank you sign for paramedics hangs on a porch in Toronto's east end, directly across the street from a Toronto Paramedic Services station.Melissa Tait/The Globe and Mail/The Globe and Mail
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