Nurse uses 'thank you' art from local first grader to make lasting, positive memory from 2020.

It has been well over a year since the COVID-19 pandemic made its way to the United States. With the widespread vaccination efforts, we are now able to see the light at the end of this very long tunnel starting to grow brighter. In many ways, it’s a time to reflect back as we’ve all taken something out of 2020 that we will carry with us going forward. While the pandemic brought untold damage to many, Jeff, a nurse in the Saint Francis Hospital surgical unit, has chosen to imprint one particular memory in a unique way, with a special piece of tattoo art.



Jeff, like so many in his chosen profession, received an outpouring of support throughout the last year and has commemorated those memories. During the first surge of COVID-19 patients, children from various communities sent homemade cards, posters, and messages of support to frontline workers at Saint Francis. Many of those tokens of support were displayed on walls where colleagues entered the building to start their work day, on units where COVID-19 patients were being treated, and throughout the hospital to remind hospital staff the community was in their corner, cheering them on.

“I saw this picture and immediately fell in love with it. I knew that I wanted to do something to commemorate 2020…It was like a flash of lightning,” Jeff said of the day he spotted a drawing by a first grader named Greyson. The drawing was of a cartoon-like figure, donning a set of green scrubs and cap typical of those who work on a surgical unit, and a surgical mask.

“It said ‘try to take something away from 2020 that you will cherish for the rest of your life,’” Jeff recalled about an email he read that was sent to colleagues from Thomas Burke, President of Saint Francis Hospital. Jeff says it was the healthy reminder needed amidst some of the darkest days. “It was a reminder that there was a lot of good that happened in 2020 - people got married, had babies, and bought houses and so much more.”

Jeff went on, “Ink is important to me and something that I would carry with me.”

So, he reached out to his nephew, a local tattoo artist, and made the artwork permanent in early 2021. After getting the tattoo, Jeff wanted to meet the original artist and personally thank him. After some coordination and with all COVID safety protocols in mind, Greyson and his mom, Jackie, visited Saint Francis to meet Jeff.

“It’s really cool that I got to meet him in real life,” said Greyson, who is an avid artist.

The two were fast friends. Jeff showed Greyson his tattoo and Greyson showed Jeff his sketchbook, from which Jeff identified possibilities for other tattoos in the future. They chatted about their families, skiing, and the impact of students sending notes like the one Jeff received.

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Tattoo

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“When we saw that someone had put these pictures up on the wall, it just immediately brightened your day,” explained Jeff. “This was a thank you to all health care workers, all over the world, really. It’s Greyson saying thank you to all of us, and it’s me saying thank you to all the other health care workers out there. It’s very special.”

To bring the entire endeavor full circle, Jeff had t-shirts made with the tattoo image – strategically located towards the side of the tee, in the same place he has his permanent ink.

A nurse for 35 years, Jeff was honored in 2020 with a Nightingale Award for Excellence in Nursing, a recognition that can be received by a nurse only once in his or her lifetime. Jeff was described in his nomination as “the heart and soul of our hospital robotics program for the past decade,” and was recognized for his coordination of an annual medical mission trip to South America.

The World Health Assembly designated 2020 the International Year of the Nurse to honor of the 200th anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth and to advance nurses' vital role in transforming health care around the world. This designation was made long before anyone knew what 2020 would hold.

Reflecting on this past year, Jeff said, “For me, this is just a thank you to all health care workers all over this world. Hang in there, things will get better or we’ll work with it.”

Watch the FOX61 story About Jeff and Greyson.

To learn about how you can become part of the Trinity Health Of New England nursing team, please visit our Nursing Page.

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