Healthcare teams across southern New Hampshire continue to be a vast resource for our communities. These people are part of our community. They are the stalwart institutions made up of individuals who are our neighbors, our friends, brothers and sisters, moms and dads, partners and spouses, and grandparents. They are part of our family. These institutions have led by example. Their people have led through sacrifice.

They’ve worked tirelessly preparing remote triage and care sites, sourcing materials and equipment, training, educating, and comforting. In the face of this pandemic, they have answered the call, all while still meeting our communities’ everyday healthcare needs. They have worked with community leaders so we have the right equipment – ventilators and masks – to deliver treatment. They’ve educated our community on how we can help.

They have always been there. We may just never have seen them. Now we do.

Their families pray for their safe return. What makes our community strong is our commitment to each other. Just as the hospitals and their teams are committed to keeping us safe and healthy, we must be there for them.

Nothing is more important than health. The fabric of our society is our connection to each other. Today, health care providers are saying goodbye to their families so that they can help care for and treat the most aggressive virus we’ve seen in our lifetimes. They say goodbye because they cannot risk seeing family and possibly spreading the illness.

To bring back our neighbors to their families. Our community has stepped up with individuals providing care packages, companies retooling their operations to provide critical materials, and most importantly by following the guidelines of social distancing and masking orders.

We can all do our part. We can overcome this pandemic. It will take all of us. Look outside your window. Look down the street. The first responders and healthcare professionals are leaving their homes.