Virginia Pahl, a Connection Center specialist at the Good Samaritan, found a simple way to uplift the spirits of residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Because visitor restrictions are in place at all Society locations, she’s handwriting letters to each resident at Good Samaritan – Luther Manor.
“I love to write notes and I thought it might brighten a resident’s day,” says Virginia.
Along with being an encouragement to residents, writing the letters has also been a great outlet for her during these uncertain times.
“I thought, ‘This is going to be my stress reliever,’” she says.
Virginia reached out to Administrator Linda Studer to get first names of all the residents in order to provide a more personalized touch.
In between taking calls as a Connection Center specialist, Virginia writes the letters. She’s also including a ruler with a magnifier strip and a mini card with an inspirational quote.
She writes something different in each letter and gets inspiration from various places, including quotes on Facebook and song lyrics.
In one card, she included words from the song “What a Wonderful World.”
I see trees of green, red roses too
I see them bloom for me and you
And I think to myself what a wonderful world
After Virginia has the more than 80 letters completed, she’ll deliver them to the center with hopes that each resident knows she is thinking about them and wishing them the best.
Everyday, unsung heroes like Virginia make a difference for our residents during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Even though we have dark skies, the world goes on,” Virginia says. We all have to focus on something positive.”
Information in this article was accurate when it was posted. As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, scientific understanding and guidelines may have changed since the original publication date. Read more about the COVID-19 vaccines.
The Good Samaritan Society requires masking in its locations. Anyone shown without a mask was either recorded prior to the masking requirement or recorded in a non-patient care area where social distancing and other safety protocols were followed.