I recently had the opportunity to go to a large conference for UPMC. I left on a Sunday evening and returned on a Thursday. As I stepped out my front door, I hugged and kissed my wife and 2 year old son. Two hours later, I was 36,000 ft in the air traveling to a destination 2,000 miles from home. As Wednesday morning’s sun creeped through my blinds and lit up my hotel room, my first thought was “I miss my family.” I don’t often admit to having feelings; I pretend to be a tough guy and nothing bothers me, but in reality no matter how tough you are, you are feeling something.
This past week I was overwhelmed with feelings, not of being homesick or love, but of compassion and sorrow. I met 15 co-workers here at UPMC who are from Nepal, a country 7,631 miles away, who have moved to Pittsburgh for a different life. A little over a week ago, these Nepal natives homeland was rocked by a horrific earthquake, killing thousands. As I filmed each one I could see the pain they felt for their native country. They haven’t yet spoken to their family in Nepal to know if they are safe. I did not have much time to speak to each individual but I had the opportunity to say hello and goodbye to each and could feel the pain in their eyes as they replied. It wasn’t until I edited all the footage together and watched the video below that I truly felt humbled. I stare at each of them intently as they stareback off the screen… and all I can think to myself is, “how can I help?” I hope by watching this video you ask yourself the same question. Whether you work here at UPMC, live in western PA, or are just a compassionate person who happened to land on this blog, please “donate what you can, when you can.”
