Our Week 6 Community Team of the Week is made up of four local heroes impacting their community in unique ways - from working to ensure food deliveries to those in need to creating homemade masks.
This week, we're honoring Carolyn Chen, Kevin Galaba, Courtney Wehage, and Jamie Ehrlich.
Read the incredible stories from the Community Team of the Week below & send us your nominees here!
Carolyn Chen is a family doctor at CLINICA Family Health who has been away from her family for two months, but continues to brighten up the days of patients and coworkers with baked goods. She was nominated by her coworker Yesica Veloz.
"Carolyn is amazing doctor," Veloz said. "She brightens everyone's day and goes above and beyond for her patients. She is an amazing coworker, friend and mother. During this time, she has been baking delicious cakes for people to make their day. She has an amazing big heart."
Kevin Galaba is the volunteer coordinator at Denver Metro Emergency Food Network who has been in charge of volunteer food delivery service during COVID-19. Galaba and his team of volunteers have served over 150,000 meals during this time. He was nominated by his friend Alex Stokeld.
"Denver Metro Emergency Food Network has been partnering with a handful of local food-based nonprofit organizations to prepare and deliver meals to homebound seniors and isolated low income families in the area," Stokeld said. "Kevin has been working around the clock to ensure these families and individuals are getting the necessary meals they need."
Courtney Wehage is a fourth grade teacher at Milliken Elementary School and was nominated by her husband Andrew Wehage for all the work she has been doing behind the scenes to make fun interactive activities for her student during COVID-19.
"I have an awesome team." Courtney Wehage said. "We have created bingo cards with activities for kids to do that hits on all academy subjects like math, reading, science, etc. One thing we tried to do hit on is our Colorado history. That is what fourth grade is kind of known for is teaching Colorado history, so my team and myself tried to really make sure we integrated that with the bingo card. I try to make sure to engage with the kids as much as possible during this team, so on Tuesdays I started a book club for any student who wants to participate, and the kids run that, so that has been awesome. They pick the books that they want to read, and whoever wants to read those, we give them a timeline and have the kids set up the zoom meetings. They come up with the questions, and they run the book club, so it's been really cool to have that for them."
Jamie Ehrlich, a King Soopers bookkeeper, has been making masks for her coworkers and started the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus OB Mask Project, where she has been making masks for the OB-GYN unit at Anschutz Medical Campus.
"The OB-GYN ward was short on masks, so they had to reuse their masks through multiple days," Ehrlich said. "So, the masks that I made can go under their medical ones, and give them an opportunity to go home and wash them so they can reuse them over and over again. I just felt this was something small that I could do for my community, and I got to spend it with my daughter so that was incredible. I like to make sure my people are going to be here tomorrow and the next day, so if there is something I can do to help them in that matter, then I am going to do it."
