Amid the stress, fear and grief brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, there are still glimmers of good news: Self-isolating Americans are rising to this unprecedented challenge to bring relief, comfort, moments of joy and glimpses of normalcy to a locked-down world.
In this week’s edition: hope on a bus, love in a bucket truck, kindness at the supermarket and music in the air.
Anonymous Donation Leaves Senior Shoppers ‘Speechless’: "One woman, who had run out of government assistance for food, could not stop crying when she found out about the donation," NECN reported. You can find the full story here.
What the World Needs, Now: From their homes, backyards and bright pink bedrooms, more than 70 elementary school students from San Marcos, California, gathered online to take part in a touching musical tribute to essential workers. Meanwhile, on the other side of the country, New Yorkers have been belting out a classic tune as part of the city's nightly salute to the medical workers on the pandemic's front lines. And, two years after becoming an unlikely singing sensation, a 34-year-old surgeon with a golden voice is releasing his first-ever EP, and all of the proceeds will be donated to The Center of Disaster Philanthropy COVID-19 Response Fund.
Higher Love: Nicholas Avtges Sr., 88, has been separated for weeks from his wife of 61 years, Marion Avtges, as she's under lockdown in a Massachusetts nursing home. But with a little help from family – and a bucket truck – the couple was finally able to reconnect. Get more here from NBC News.
Michael Che of 'Saturday Night Live' said this week that he would pay the month's rent for all the residents of the 160-unit New York City Housing Authority building where his grandmother, who recently died from coronavirus complications, once lived.
Helping Neighbors in Need: A nine-year-old Girl Scout came up with a sweet, simple way to give back to her family's Southern California community during the coronavirus pandemic. And in Washington, D.C., a mission-driven bus is delivering more than just essential supplies to communities in need.
"Very, very uncommon. I don't know that I have ever had sisters deliver on the same day," their doctor said. The sisters weren't able to speak face-to-face, so they tapped on the wall and talked on Facetime. From NBC New York, a moment of joy during the pandemic: Sisters Give Birth Just Hours Apart at NJ Hospital
