Globe Magazine | Gratitude Issue

June 21, 2020 | The Gratitude Issue

THANK YOU…

To those striving to save lives. To those keeping us going. To those fighting for a better future.

Health care workers at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford photographed as part of #thefrontstepsproject.

Ayanna Pressley speaks from home during the UMass Amherst 2020 online commencement ceremony.

'Our communities are facing a crisis within a crisis, trauma layered upon trauma'

By Ayanna Pressley

Staff in the special pathogen unit at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

All across the country, health care workers save lives and show deep compassion

Staff at work at Porto, a restaurant in Boston.

To Obi. And Yonny. And all the people at the heart of restaurants

By Joanne Chang and Christopher Myers

Some child-care centers remained open throughout the quarantine to provide support for essential workers.

COVID-19 showed the resilience of young people, teachers, and caregivers

A research technician at the Ragon Institute in Cambridge, where COVID-19 research is being conducted.

A Nobel Prize winner on how to thank medical researchers and health care workers: Wear a mask

By Dr. William G. Kaelin Jr.

Health care workers at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford photographed as part of #TheFrontStepsProject.

To the photographers, and their subjects, raising millions for charity

As told to magazine staffers

Pine Street Inn kitchen staffers at work during the pandemic.

At the Pine Street Inn and beyond, our dedication to helping homeless people endures

By Lyndia Downie

Gladys Vega oversees a Chelsea Collaborative food drive.

I’m inspired by nonprofits helping people, especially in communities of color

By Orlando Watkins

Activists participate in a “die-in,” co-organized by Violence in Boston, on June 2 on Blue Hill Avenue.

Activists are essential workers fighting for a more just America

By Monica Cannon-Grant

A Boston EMS ambulance crew wheels a patient into Massachusetts General Hospital.

To the firefighters and rescuers who face whatever comes

A UPS driver wearing a mask makes deliveries on Newbury Street.

We have to stop using the term ‘blue-collar’ and start saying ‘essential’

By John Ratzenberger

Richie Hebner in front of a hearse he drives.

Thank you for the empathy of the 'last responders' at cemeteries and funeral homes

By Richie Hebner

The Rev. Liz Walker.

Faith matters at times like this

By The Rev. Liz Walker

A worker decontaminates an MBTA Blue Line train during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thank you to the people keeping public transportation running

By Michael Dukakis

Social justice advocates hold a press conference outside Boston City Hall on June 9.

Grateful for our community organizations, coming together for change

By Eric Esteves

Michelle Figueroa is the founder of Good News Movement.

As the pandemic grew, another wave surged: compassion from strangers

By Michelle Figueroa

Ken Burns is an award-winning filmmaker.

We must look at nurses, delivery people, and other essential workers with even greater respect

Screen grabs from the Boston Pops’ performance of "Summon The Heroes" on May 5. Each performer played separately and their recordings were edited together.

Now, as ever, I marvel at musicians’ ability to unite us

By Keith Lockhart

Daphne Lewis and her family. She is a nurse at Boston Children's Hospital.

What these essential workers are thankful for

As told to Joel Lau

Kristin Notarangeli, a gardener at the Encore Boston Harbor casino, replaces petunias in the Harborwalk gardens.

'This Old House' contractor thankful for those bringing beauty to our plants, public spaces, and planet

Michael Carbin is among the people Daniel Jackson photographed for his At A Distance project, which he started during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Grateful for kind neighbors in the midst of COVID-19

By Daniel Jackson

Nantucket Cottage Hospital.

Here’s a shout-out to you, essential Nantucket

By Elin Hildebrand

A grocery store employee wears a mask to interact with customers.

Grocery store workers, know that you are making a difference

In this 2012 photo, Bill Russell receives a standing ovation at a Celtics game. Russell is a civil rights activist and he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2011.

Bill Russell’s hope for America: That this time will be different

I’ve been waiting my whole life for America to live up to its unfulfilled promise, Russell writes, because our lives depend on it.