Since the outbreak ignited, many businesses and community-run facilities have had to change how they operate. Some have had to close down temporarily. Others turned to mostly or merely remote operation. Some are even running as usual but with extra precautions set in place such as only allowing a certain number of people to enter their building at a time, encouraging customers to book appointments or make purchases online, and having staff wear masks and/or gloves.
There’s a chance that your local hospital has been doing things differently as well. Like many hospitals, the University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center in Sugarland has been temporarily disallowing visitors. However, that rule didn’t stop Albert Conner from showing his wife, who was receiving chemotherapy for breast cancer that she was diagnosed with back in January, support in another way.
On March 30, 2020, the father of three set up a chair outside of his wife’s hospital room with a sign that read, “I can’t be with you, but I’m here. <3 you! Thank you to all staff!!!”
Wife, Kelly, was shocked and in tears when she peered out her hospital window to see the heartwarming gesture.
“As soon as he texted me, I just kind of lifted up in my chair a little bit to peer out the window and he was just right there,” she said. “It immediately brought tears to my eyes and I felt a love for him right then in that moment, that he would do that for me.”
Even the nurse in her room was moved by Albert’s thoughtfulness.
“I think I kind of gasped and the nurse turned around and said, ‘What’s wrong?’ And then she saw I was looking out the window and she looked out and started to tear up too.”
Kelly’s nurse wasn’t the only hospital staff member that was inspired by the sign.
“A few of them said I was the reason that they come to work. The attention made me uncomfortable but it made me feel good and was very touching,” Albert said.
While Albert wishes he could be in person with his wife during her battle with breast cancer, he knows how crucial it is to keep socially distant during this time.
“When you just reflect on everything and think about all the nurses and doctors and other patients, it makes perfect sense. You really can’t argue it. You just have to support it any way you can.”
However, he’s still eager to find ways to make sure Kelly knows that he’ll always be there for him, even if he can’t physically be there.
“I didn’t feel right not being a part of it because I had promised her that I would be there every step of the way and I felt like I would be breaking my word,” he said.
He will continue to be there for her in different ways as she finishes her last chemo treatment in May. As she succeeds in winning her battle, she will need her husband’s support more than ever.
Everyone knows that being there physically for people can’t be beaten, but with recent world events, it’s so touching that people are finding alternative ways to be present with those they care about.
View the images taken of Albert’s sign and his wife’s reaction below.
