Though they were still students when the pandemic began, that didn’t stop hundreds of future nurses from making a difference.When Delainey Dietz began nursing school at the University of Central Florida, she had no idea a global pandemic would soon disrupt the U.S. health care system.Delainey was inspired to enroll by her mother, a nurse herself. She explained, "Seeing the connections that she made with her patients, and that really inspired me."She was still a student when COVID-19 hit, but she still jumped at the chance to help, though she admits it was "definitely scary when it first started."Delainey became one of hundreds of nursing students giving out the vaccine across central Florida, revealing that some people have even asked to be recorded while getting their shots."There's a lot of people who've been waiting a long time for this vaccine and have been very careful and very afraid to leave their houses," she noted.They were observed by their instructors during their shifts, and their teachers were keenly aware that this was a make-or-break time for their students."They're in a pivotal point, where they really had a decision to make. Because when they started nursing school, this was not the reality," said clinical coordinator Kate Dorminy.But Delainey said the experience has only strengthened her desire to be a nurse, saying, "I think, if anything, it's made a lot of us even more motivated to be nurses and to really make an impact in the health care field."Stitch brings you heartwarming stories from a community just like yours. It celebrates our hometown heroes and is inspired by communities, revitalized. Stitch is committed to honoring our history, celebrating our potential and highlighting the tales that bring us together. Every day, we are stitching together the American story.Want more stories like these? Follow Stitch on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

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With her husband in the hospital with COVID-19, Kerri Hurley felt helpless."To not be able to hug a loved one, or touch them, and think of the worst, like, ‘What if?’" she said. "Because he did go down very quickly. You think of these things and how they are so alone and just by themselves."The closest Hurley could get to him was to sit under his window, which she did each night."I was able to walk up to the window and hold up the camera and show my daughter, who's 6 and doesn’t understand why daddy can't come home," she noted.But the isolation was difficult for both of them, with Hurley explaining, "He knew that he wasn't doing so well, and he was scared."Hurley's husband recovered physically, but she credits one doctor in particular for preserving his mental state: Dr. Ben Moor, who would stay by his bedside."I'd just kind of sit with them, chat or not chat and kind of hold a hand," Dr. Moor explained.Once he became fully vaccinated, the doctor volunteered to spend time with patients after his shifts.Hurley revealed that the doctor once called her to say her husband had a smile on his face, which she said "meant so much.""I think it’s changed now that we've been vaccinated," Dr. Moor stated. "I think that puts people in a better frame of mind to do the things that are not wholly medical."Along with Dr. Moor, dozens of staff members at his hospital donated time to lonely patients.For Hurley and many others, these generous volunteers were a godsend."This program is so important, for not only me, but for millions of people who are waiting for their loved ones to call them and say, 'Hey, I’m OK,'" she explained.Stitch brings you heartwarming stories from a community just like yours. It celebrates our hometown heroes and is inspired by communities, revitalized. Stitch is committed to honoring our history, celebrating our potential and highlighting the tales that bring us together. Every day, we are stitching together the American story.Want more stories like these? Follow Stitch on YouTube, Facebook and Instagram.

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