Winners announced in Lites of Love essay contest

Fourth grade students in area schools were invited to submit essays for the annual Aspirus Medford Hospital Volunteers Lites of Love program. The finalists were recognized at a ceremony held at Aspirus Medford Hospital.

Now in its 24th year, the Lites of Love program invites people to make donations to the Aspirus Volunteers- Medford in remembrance or in honor of loved ones. Money raised from the Lites of Love program funds scholarships to students pursuing medical careers in the Aspirus Medford service area. The essay topic for this year was “Describe a health care hero.”

First place

My heroes are the nurses at the Medford Aspirus Infusion Center. They take good care of me when I go to get my infusion once a month. They are kind and gentle when they start my IV. They also try their best to only poke me one time. They make me feel comfortable when my IV is going by bringing warm blankets, checking on me, and bringing me snacks. Without them I wouldn’t get my infusions and would be sick all the time. This is why I chose the nurses at Medford Aspirus Infusion Center as my heroes. — Braxton Larson of Stetsonville Elementary School

Second place

A health care hero is somebody that puts other people before himself. This means that sometimes they might miss holidays with family, their kids sporting events, and time at home because they are helping other people in their community. A health care hero to me is someone who cares, who has compassion, and who is dedicated to their job. Saving lives is not something everyone can do. Health care heroes do not have to work in hospitals. This health care hero I am describing is my dad. My dad is a paramedic and the manager of Taylor county ambulance. — Oliver Nuernberger of Stetsonville Elementary School

Honorable Mention

Right now health care workers are working 24/7 saving peoples lives. So many people are volunteering, counting cases, contact tracing and standing at testing sites all day long. Now there are two kinds of super heroes; some that fly and can make things float, and some that are working hard all day long saving lives. This year a superhero to me is someone who works on the front lines, a health care worker, there are all kinds of them from your hometown dentist to someone in the full gown, mask and face shield. — Natalyn Dixon of Holy Rosary Catholic School

I think my mom is a health care hero because she is a nurse in surgery. She is kind and loving when she helps people. She helps people feel better when they are scared or sick. I think she is awesome at it too. She puts her mind to helping others, and is not selfish because she cares for others first. She gives up her time for them. That’s why I would call my Mom a health care hero. — Raylyn Liske of Medford Area Elementary School

Healthcare workers are strong and they don’t give up. They help us when we are sick and as hard as it is, they keep fighting. They are very smart and know how to use every tool, and they save our lives. Healthcare workers work long hours through the night. Their love for others is so strong. They have been working in the midst of this pandemic. I’d like to say thank you to all healthcare workers for fighting all the diseases and sicknesses. — Melanie Richter of Holy Rosary Catholic School

Hello! Im here to tell you about my mom! My mom just graduated from nursing school. My mom is very sweet, kind, thoughtful, takes good care of her kids, and much more. My mom studys so hard she rarely gets to spend time with us but I know she works really hard to. What my mom says it sounds like she’s having a lot of fun with her job. I think really everyone is very good at there job but I just want to say thank you to the nurses. At this time because I just can’t imagine how they do it. I have tons more to say about my mom but all I can say now is thank you! — Aubree Viergutz of Medford Area Elementary School