this reunion was so touching to everybody out in our community. It was such a joy to meet paul. And fred because those guys have really done everything you could possibly do to make friends moms time in her nursing facility as painless as possible during the pandemic. They missed her so much when she was in the nursing home throughout the pandemic. But they could not go in. They did everything they possibly could to stay in touch with her and put her hand up to the glass door patrick through the glass. That way to be as close to a crispy good Aaron is a real hunger. Few months to uh huh Report just colder. That was the one thing that was missing. That human touch that hug Mary turned 100 right before the pandemic began. And some of the final pictures that Fred and Paul have with Mary are at her 100th birthday with a huge crowd. So by February of 2021 Mary had turned 101 years old. They couldn't have a party for her in person, but this reunion happened shortly thereafter and it was just about the best gift they could all imagine in here just being in the nursing facility where mary lives. They had a waiting list for people who wanted to see their loved ones fred and paul got right on the list and so they did everything that they needed to do to make that happen. And that included getting their covid shots and making sure they passed a rapid covid test the day of the visit. And of course mary had her shots after her being able to hide the entire year. I was not going to let that moment. It was just wonderful. The biggest gigantic hugs from both of the girls. Barbara and Jim are the grandparents of Clara and Caroline. Barbara is a grandmother who's totally invested in seeing her grandchildren all the time. She usually drove About an hour away three times a week to help with child care for her granddaughters. Their mom, crystal is a family practice physician knew how important it was for them to basically, in her words, do what she had been telling her patients and that is keep distanced. She knew it was important that they wear masks all the time. But most important, she knew that visits with her parents and the grandkids that wasn't going to be safe for the grandparents in particular, they stayed separate until they knew it was going to be safe once we were fully vaccinated and then the new CDC guidelines that came out, we were definitely ready to embrace those and I know that it was safe for us to get together again. It was so wonderful. I mean just to all be together in like old days again, all kinds. She recounted hearing on March 12th that she couldn't come to be with the grandkids and it was March 13th, one year later when they finally reunited. Don't waste any time then be with you want to once a month. I think that's so much of why this story resonated with people. It's because they can all put themselves in the shoes of paul and fred or the Ortmann measly families, they can all relate to wanting to see their loved ones again, just really encourage everyone when your chances up to get the vaccine. I think it is what we all need to do and to get back to whatever the new normal is. We all want to have that special moment where we hug our loved ones, our grandparents and our parents for the first time in such a long time. I'm thrilled about these moments that we can bring to our viewers that illustrate the joy of getting back together. It's just been a wonderful arc of how this virus has gone from bringing the horrible and sad and heart rending news about the virus has spread and the deaths that resulted the lives lost, the jobs, lost the businesses that had to go under. That's all been so heavy. But I think as we sort of see the light at the end of the tunnel, it's important that we bring those stories to our community to because I think that's what people need right now, they need to know that there's hope.
'We knew this day would come': Families share what it's like to reunite thanks to COVID-19 vaccine
Families waited a full year to see loved ones.
Updated: 10:22 AM EDT Apr 29, 2021
It was nearly a year to the day the last time these families saw one another safely. Here, they share what the first moments of being together again felt like.One of the last times Paul Klein and Fred Emigh saw Fred's mother, Mary, was at her 100th birthday party. They reunited recently, after her 101st birthday party, and captured the emotional moment on video. For Barbara and Jim Ortman, they were thrilled to be able to see their granddaughters for the first time in a year. Their daughter, Crystal Masley, is a family physician and knew how important mitigating COVID-19 risks for her parents was. So they made the difficult decision to stop in-person visits. Now, real-life reunions are possible, thanks to the COVID-19 vaccination and new CDC and local guidelines. Watch more on their stories above. We are living in unprecedented times with COVID-19 spreading across the nation and world, and the stories about how people are coping, battling, and persevering through the pandemic have become more important than ever. In each episode, “Field Notes” brings you a handful of stories about how coronavirus has impacted real people across the United States, and you can hear more about what it’s like to cover the pandemic from the local news teams that are committed to keeping you informed, no matter what.
It was nearly a year to the day the last time these families saw one another safely. Here, they share what the first moments of being together again felt like.
One of the last times Paul Klein and Fred Emigh saw Fred's mother, Mary, was at her 100th birthday party. They reunited recently, after her 101st birthday party, and captured the emotional moment on video.
For Barbara and Jim Ortman, they were thrilled to be able to see their granddaughters for the first time in a year. Their daughter, Crystal Masley, is a family physician and knew how important mitigating COVID-19 risks for her parents was. So they made the difficult decision to stop in-person visits.
Now, real-life reunions are possible, thanks to the COVID-19 vaccination and new CDC and local guidelines.
Watch more on their stories above.
We are living in unprecedented times with COVID-19 spreading across the nation and world, and the stories about how people are coping, battling, and persevering through the pandemic have become more important than ever.
In each episode, “Field Notes” brings you a handful of stories about how coronavirus has impacted real people across the United States, and you can hear more about what it’s like to cover the pandemic from the local news teams that are committed to keeping you informed, no matter what.
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