Janet's Housing Fund
Donation protected
Hi Everyone,
Just a few days ago, one of our PCOM kitchen staff and cooks, Janet, lost everything to a house fire. Without insurance to cover the damages, she has been staying at the Red Cross in Philadelphia and has 21 days to do so before needing to relocate.
In spite of her misfortune, Janet consistently shows up for work with the same reliable enthusiasm, pleasant attitude, and genuine interest in the lives of others. When I’m having a difficult day (for some of us medical school, that might comprise most of them), she always encourages us to talk about it, or see what she can do. She strives to know us on a first name basis, and constantly reminds us to be grateful.
Often times, we take a lot of the opportunities we have for granted. While we may have exams that seem to carry the gravity of life or death, feel less than validated when we aren’t achieving an academic milestone, or have the tendency to complain when our coffee is too stale or our parking garage is too impacted, we forget that some of the most primitive and essential resources needed to thrive-food to eat, a place to sleep, a coat to wear in the winter- are not readily available to everyone in our immediate community.
It is tempting to be disillusioned in our little bubble of medical academia, aspiring to be (and hopefully becoming) excellent physicians, but sometimes inadvertently forgetting what is means to provide care in its truest form: using our minds to think, but also using our hands to give to those experiencing hardship, whether it be physical, emotional, economical, or otherwise.
It only takes a small individual sacrifice to collectively make a huge difference. If both the M1 and M2 classes donated just 1 dollar per person, we would have >500 dollars in less than a day. If every person allocated a week’s worth of morning lattes towards helping someone who doesn't have a bed of their own, we could together easily exceed 2000.
I encourage you to give what you can, if you can, at your discretion. For as much as we are an institution of science and learning and healthcare, we are also a family, which extends far beyond our student body. If you haven’t had the opportunity to meet Janet, you should. Your sandwich, and your day, will be markedly more delightful.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in.”
-Matthew, 25:35
Thank you,
Veronica Williams
DO Class of 2017
Just a few days ago, one of our PCOM kitchen staff and cooks, Janet, lost everything to a house fire. Without insurance to cover the damages, she has been staying at the Red Cross in Philadelphia and has 21 days to do so before needing to relocate.
In spite of her misfortune, Janet consistently shows up for work with the same reliable enthusiasm, pleasant attitude, and genuine interest in the lives of others. When I’m having a difficult day (for some of us medical school, that might comprise most of them), she always encourages us to talk about it, or see what she can do. She strives to know us on a first name basis, and constantly reminds us to be grateful.
Often times, we take a lot of the opportunities we have for granted. While we may have exams that seem to carry the gravity of life or death, feel less than validated when we aren’t achieving an academic milestone, or have the tendency to complain when our coffee is too stale or our parking garage is too impacted, we forget that some of the most primitive and essential resources needed to thrive-food to eat, a place to sleep, a coat to wear in the winter- are not readily available to everyone in our immediate community.
It is tempting to be disillusioned in our little bubble of medical academia, aspiring to be (and hopefully becoming) excellent physicians, but sometimes inadvertently forgetting what is means to provide care in its truest form: using our minds to think, but also using our hands to give to those experiencing hardship, whether it be physical, emotional, economical, or otherwise.
It only takes a small individual sacrifice to collectively make a huge difference. If both the M1 and M2 classes donated just 1 dollar per person, we would have >500 dollars in less than a day. If every person allocated a week’s worth of morning lattes towards helping someone who doesn't have a bed of their own, we could together easily exceed 2000.
I encourage you to give what you can, if you can, at your discretion. For as much as we are an institution of science and learning and healthcare, we are also a family, which extends far beyond our student body. If you haven’t had the opportunity to meet Janet, you should. Your sandwich, and your day, will be markedly more delightful.
“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in.”
-Matthew, 25:35
Thank you,
Veronica Williams
DO Class of 2017
Organizer
Veronica Williams
Organizer
Philadelphia, PA
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