6 Inspirational Stories of Unsung COVID Warriors

One and a half years back, when the world was welcoming 2020, no one had ever thought that their lives would be turned upside down. Within the next three months, COVID pandemic hit and people were locked in their homes. While some countries did well, some faced tremendous difficulty in managing COVID-19 pandemic. This was a true global pandemic after the Spanish Flu of 1919. A few regions are still affected while a few are recovering from it.   

COVID was a testament of human compassion, social and helpfulness. While there were countless stories where people have shown exceptional resilience and empathy, there are a few unsung stories which need to be shared. 

Here are a few stories where people went out of their way to help others that need to be told. Here are 6 such tales that inspired people globally. 

1. A 17 Year Old Girl Saves Her Village From Famine

This seems like a story told straight from an inspirational movie at first but is very much true. When COVID hit India, the nation of more than one billion people was not prepared. Hundreds of millions had been impacted and among them was 17 year old Gayatri. Her village was facing a unique problem. 

Barely hearing about pandemic from local NGOs and cut off from the world, her village located in Bihar has lost PDS (Public Distribution System) due to lockdown. This meant that they had no food in their village. The PDS officers told them that food would be distributed once the lockdown was lifted. 

But there was no end date of lockdown and the whole village was already out of rations. There was a possible famine lingering. Not dampening her hopes, Gayatri took matters into her own hands. She made a list of every household in the village and put it on social media for help. When no response came, she wrote to the District Collector for help. 

Things changed as it came to the notice of the collector and immediate action was taken. Now that the lockdown has lifted, Gayatri is happy to be back at school but her courage to solely fight for her village stands out. 

2. Doctor Comes Out of Retirement to Join Hospital 

Dr. Chuck Wright, a veteran doctor who is 62 years old has seen his fair share of tragedies in California in his days as a doctor. After his retirement, he volunteered, occasionally treating firefighters and displaced residents. 

When COVID hit the USA, he took up his doctor apron once again. Deployed in San Mateo County, he reckoned with 16-18 hour workdays, putting his life at risk everyday serving the patients. 

His wife is suffering from multiple sclerosis. This means that whenever the doctor comes home, he isolated himself from his wife and family so that they remain infection-free. 

“My desire to help goes beyond my personal fear,†he said. This personal sacrifice and Dr. Wright’s desire to help the community is an inspiration in itself. 

3. Woman Helping Sex Workers Amid Pandemic

Three days after COVID lockdown announcement, Ruchira Gupta, founder of Apne Aap NGO received a disturbing call from a 12-year-old from the red light areas of Delhi. The girl was starving and she begged her for her help. 

The situation was alarming. The well-being of sex workers is not the top priority of most people but Ruchira took matters in her own hands. She quickly arranged 500 meals with the help of friends and family. 

COVID 19 was disastrous for sex workers. They have lost their income and many were starving even after selling all their belongings. Ruchira’s continued efforts put into motion a chain of giving and receiving,  “Give India, Share Indiaâ€.

Within 100 days, the initiative crossed over five million meals. This helped save countless lives and got commended by various celebrities. 

4. A Unique Way of Giving Human Touch to Patients

Brazil is one of the worst-hit countries. Due to social isolation, doctors and nurses were not able to come near the patients. Sometimes when patients are in critical condition, it becomes impossible to extend human touch for those in need. 

A Brazilian nurse came up with a unique solution by extending the patients in the isolation ward by extending a touch of the human hand to keep their spirits high. She arranged two disposable gloves tied, full of hot water, simulating impossible human contact. 

This healing touch is necessary for patients who are craving human interaction in these grim times. Salute to the front-line workers for coming with such beautiful ideas and helping people while risking their lives.

5. Children Donate Their Piggy Bank 

Children have the purest of hearts. In one such gesture, children in Gujrat showed exceptional humility when they heard about the pandemic. In a heartwarming gesture, the children went to the local government office and asked the officer that they wanted to donate their piggy banks to provide relief to poor people affected by the lockdown. 

They then became among the list of celebrities and business tycoons who have donated to the PM care fund and aided in the relief of the poor. This story had a ripple effect where nearby families donated to help the cause. 

Gujrat Police tweeted for this helpful donation “We are extremely pleased by the kind gesture of these kidsâ€.

6. Doctors Spend Honeymoon Fighting COVID

The front-line workers, especially doctors and nurses gained immense respect in our hearts for their selfless fight against COVID-19. Two doctors from New York showed exceptional resilience when they decided to cancel their wedding in London to help patients. 

Dr. Ashif Chaudhry and Dr. Naila Shereen fell in love when they met on medical trips around the world. They were to be married in London but coronavirus was becoming worse by that time. 

It was during that time, both of them decided to get married in New York. Their wedding was a very simple affair following social distance practice and within 12 hours, they were back in hospital to help fight coronavirus. 

The doctor couple described it as their ethical and moral responsibility and the right thing to do. While couples spend their honeymoon on some foreign destinations, this couple has given new ‘couple goals’ of showing selfless courage and compassion. 

These stories are only just a few among the COVID warriors. There are thousands of such inspirational stories that need to be told to kindle positivity around the globe. UPDEED is doing exactly that! 

With thousands of changemakers on UPDEED, know all the positive stories around the world. Know what people are working on and how they are making lives better or share your own daily positive anecdotes to become a changemaker yourself. 

Be vocal about anything positive that you do or observe. Remember, change begins with you! 

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