Area’s businesses support hospital staff

SHARON, Conn. — Though their doors may be closed to the public and their services adjusted in adherence of coronavirus pandemic protocols, area businesses showed their support for the staff at Sharon Hospital recently with a special delivery of food, flowers and encouraging notes.

As it stands, Sharon Hospital, located at 50 Hospital Hill Road in Sharon, Conn., is one of the few available hospitals in the region. Long before COVID-19 was deemed a global health crisis, the hospital ensured that its staff and departments were prepared to face a potential outbreak by running practice drills; organizing multiple daily teleconferences; teaching staff members how to place a patient with COVID-19 symptoms in an appropriate setting for treatment; and other standard infection control measures for keeping themselves and others safe.

In the wake of the evolving crisis, Marina Ballantine, the public and community affairs associate for Nuvance Health, which owns Sharon Hospital, remarked that there has been an outpouring of community support for the hospital and its emergency preparedness efforts. With the inventory of face masks and other personal protective equipment and medical supplies dwindling, local residents and businesses have pitched in with donations of surgical and N95 masks, gloves and other items  to ensure the hospital has the necessary supplies to take care of patients and stay safe. Residents interested in making a donation have been advised to contact Senior Director of Development Adele Conner at 917-846-9829 or at adele.conner@nuvancehealth.org.

On top of the donations of medical supplies, Ballantine voiced her appreciation to Country Gardeners Florist, Harney & Sons Fine Tea and Oakhurst Diner, all of Millerton, for their generous deliveries of notes, food, flowers and tea to the hospital’s medical-surgical and intensive care teams.

“We are so grateful for the support and generosity of our community,” she said.

Assembling boxes of drinks, desserts and appetizers for the hospital staff, Clare Caramanica, manager of Oakhurst Diner, said the diner decided to pitch in “just to say ‘thank you’ to them for putting their own needs aside to help all of us out.” In addition to donating food to the hospital, she said the diner is currently offering toilet paper to local residents in need of it as well as free coffee and tea to employees who are continuing to work at essential businesses. She added if essential workers bring a small bottle to the diner they’ll receive a small supply of hand sanitizer.

Grateful for the community’s support of the diner during these uncertain times, Caramanica said, “We’re looking to do a couple more specials for the community. It’s definitely a different time right now… and we do feel the community has been supporting us.”

In the town of Amenia, Chef Chip Monte of Monte’s Local Kitchen and Tap Room prepared more than 200 hot dinners for the Sharon Hospital staff with help from his wife, Candace, and other helpers from his restaurant. The meals were delivered to the hospital on Wednesday, April 1, nourishing the staff with a dinner of penne pasta with Monte’s signature sauce and salad.

Challenging other local dining establishments to do their part to help other local organizations in need of support, Monte remarked in a recent statement, “We are incredibly honored and privileged to have the opportunity to provide these meals to our local heroes during this crisis.”