Michelle Obama offers Chicago healthcare workers words of thanks and support during the COVID-19 pandemic

Video Transcript

Hi, everybody. It's Michelle Obama, and I just want to take a few minutes to let you all know how profoundly grateful Barack and I are for the heroic work that all of you are doing right now in Chicago.

We know that you all are facing overwhelming challenges.

You're working around the clock, spending long hours away from your families, and making impossible decisions day after day.

You’re soothing terrified patients, consoling heartbroken loved ones, summoning every ounce of the compassion and strength that you’ve got.

And you're saving countless lives while risking your own, and I know that you're exhausted. I know that you must be afraid.

But every single day you all continue to show up and do your jobs with excellence, empathy, and an unwavering devotion to every patient who walks through your doors.

And I'm just in awe of all of you.

You embody the very best of who we are.

The very best, and I know that we will get through this crisis because of you.

So today, I just want to say thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

I love you all. I am proud of you all.

And I'm praying for every single one of you, for your safety, your health, your strength, and all the days ahead.

Thanks, again. Take care.

Michelle Obama offered a passionate message of support and gratitude for Chicago’s healthcare workers in an audio message shared this week. In the message, she expresses how “profoundly grateful Barack and I are for the heroic work that all of you are doing right now in Chicago.”

Having grown up on Chicago’s South Side, Obama made a lasting contribution to the community as a leader at the University of Chicago Medicine. She was the first Executive Director of Community and External Affairs and then Vice President, Community and External Affairs – leading the team which built the foundation for the current Urban Health Initiative. Through her work, many initiatives currently serving community members were started, including the South Side Healthcare Collaborative and mobile healthcare units.

Obama concluded her message with words of hope: “You embody the very best of who we are. And I know that we will get through this crisis because of you.”