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Want to thank an Idaho health care worker? Statesman will help you pay tribute

Back in the spring of 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic first struck Idaho, health care workers were caught in the moment. Overwhelmed, stressed and terrified, they did their best to treat those who were afflicted with COVID-19, to comfort the sick and dying and their families, and to keep their own lives and loved ones safe.

And we — as a community — were deeply grateful.

There were drive-by parades, honks of thanks, free pizza deliveries to hospitals, ongoing tributes and more support.

But as the battle against COVID-19 has continued — and worsened in our state — suddenly doctors, nurses, EMTs and others in the health field find themselves in the crosshairs of politics and polarizing attitudes of the public’s views on the virus and its fallout that have upended our lives. They are sometimes vilified by the very people who they are trying to help.

But let’s remember what they mean to us: Doctors, nurses, medical technicians, EMTs, the people who manage and maintain our health care facilities, who care for people in senior homes, who deliver meals. They all touch our lives and deserve our thanks.

So if you know someone who works in the health care field you’re proud of, or who has helped you and your family, please tell us about them and thank them here. Or if you would like to just drop a note of thanks in general to our health care workers, please do that, too. We will compile these tributes and publish them in an upcoming Idaho Statesman issue.