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Pot-banging salute returns for Peace Arch Hospital staff

Appreciation event marks second anniversary of short-lived practice
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Oceana PARC residents Florence Ross and May Bucholtz offer a pot-and-pan serenade to Peace Arch Hospital workers who received complimentary coffees at an appreciation event next to the McCracken Courtyard at the hospital Wednesday morning (March 30).

Two years ago, at the dawn of the COVID-19 era, the banging of pots and pans – particularly in the early evening – became a ritual celebration of the hard work of our health care workers in the midst of a galloping global pandemic.

But while the custom has since subsided among a COVID-weary population, it returned – with suitable clangour – to the grounds of Peace Arch Hospital on Wednesday morning (March 30).

Members of the Peace Arch Hospital Foundation joined sponsor Oceana PARC/PARC Retirement Living, and co-sponsor Green Coast Coffee in a symbolic coffee and pot-banging appreciation event just outside the hospital’s McCracken Courtyard.

Hospital workers took a brief respite from work, in the morning sunshine, to line up for complimentary coffee and a symphony of pots and pans wielded by senior Oceana PARC management and residents of the complex.

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Foundation corporate and community philanthropy officer Elodie Bezubiak told Peace Arch News the event was an opportunity to share with the community that, while many believe that COVID is something we can now put behind us, “it’s very much alive here and around the world every day – the work of fighting it continues.”

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“We’re all fed up with it – but people at the hospital spend every day dealing with it,” she added. “We’re very lucky that we still have people fighting for us.

“We’re so glad the staff can get a five-minute break and a cup of coffee,” she said. “The staff cafeteria closed two years ago – we hope things like this can continue.”

Bezubiak said the foundation is also very grateful for the ongoing support of Oceana PARC and PARC Retirement Living.

“They have been very generous donors to the hospital,” she noted.

A supporter of the hospital since 2016, the company recently donated $1.2 million toward redevelopment of five surgical suites. In recognition, the emergency department’s registration and triage have been named in PARC’s honour.



alex.browne@peacearchnews.com

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