Thanks, PHD
Brandon Michael of Hayden, a tenor in the Inland Northwest Opera, serenades employees, volunteers and National Guard members at Panhandle Health Monday. The offering was part of a thank-you package put together by community organizers to show their appreciation to health district workers. (CRAIG NORTHRUP/Press)
Laura Tenneson delivers a bouquet of balloons to Panhandle Health executive director Lora Whalen Monday outside Panhandle Health. Community organizers collected donations they transformed into gift cards for each of the health district's 167 staff members, as well as its volunteers in the five northernmost counties.
HAYDEN — Brandon Michael asked permission as he stood outside the front doors of Panhandle Health District’s office on Atlas Road Tuesday morning. The Hayden resident was dressed in his performance tuxedo and matching black mask, though not for long.
“I just want to make sure it’s OK,” Michael said to the crowd of more than 50 employees and volunteers who had gathered outside. “Do I have permission to take off my mask?”
Michael was one of a handful of community organizers who came to give their thanks to Panhandle Health’s 167 employees, as well as the volunteers who have helped during the COVID-19 pandemic. A tenor in the Inland Northwest Opera, Michael — mandolin in hand — sang and strummed his appreciation with a rendition of "O Sole Mio."
“We just want to show our appreciation for everything you’ve done for everyone — whether or not they appreciate or understand it — to keep us safe,” Michael told the crowd.
Panhandle Health has been the focus of intense scrutiny over the past year.
Staff and volunteers have fielded tens of thousands of phone calls regarding the COVID vaccine, and they have endured the focus of anti-mask protests, all while trying to conduct the day-to-day operations of the health district.
Tuesday's gesture, Panhandle Health officials observed, went a long way to boost the health district’s morale.
“I know our staff greatly appreciated it,” Katherine Hoyer, public information officer for Panhandle Health, said after the ceremony.
The gesture included gift cards and cash for employees and volunteers across the five northernmost counties, as well as a drawing for a larger gift card to be raffled off, all thanks to a Facebook campaign that garnered more than $1,000 in donations.
“The least we can do is say, ‘Thank you,’ and buy them a cup of coffee,” said Laura Tenneson, one of the organizers of the event. “So we thought, ‘Let’s raise a couple hundred dollars.’ It ended up being over $1,000, which is awesome. It was able to provide lots of gift cards to buy lots of coffees for lots of awesome people.”
The gift also included a thank-you card and a balloon bouquet. More than 40 members of the community also gave their thanks in a private video to the employees.
And, of course, the serenade.
“This was my wife’s doing,” Michael said, his wife, Victoria, not far behind. “My wife has got the biggest heart in the whole county. She said, ‘You know, over at Panhandle, they’ve taken a lot of fire, and they’ve been very graceful about it, and they’ve weathered a bunch of storms, and it would be nice for us to go out there and try to express that we appreciate what they’re doing to try to keep us safe.'”
