WOW! The title says it all – Hard work really does pay off.
Today we introduce, Zohaib Begg – a 7-year old that decided to visit hotels in Ashburn, Virginia to collect personal protective gear (PPE) to donate to hospitals in the area.
It all started when a close friend who works in the Inova Fairfax emergency department mentioned there was a shortage of caps. Zohaib and his mother thought it would be great to make productive use of their time to help a friend in need.
Both Zohaib and his mother started contacting local hotels to see if they had any shower caps available to donate to local hospitals. A small call for action came with a big surprise.
Doesn’t everyone love surprises?!
Well, Zohaib and his mom loved this surprise! Not only were the hotels able to supply shower caps, but they could also supply gloves, and face masks!
The team spent 2 days traveling to half a dozen hotels in the area and were able to collect 6,000 items of PPE for healthcare professionals to use during such a hazardous time.
The team decided to donate the items to Inova Fairfax Hospital since second grade Zohaib had history there. Zohaib, at only 4 years old, had emergency surgery to remove a tumor from his abdomen, as mentioned by Patch. He was under the care of a hematologist for 3 years to ensure there was no regrowth of the tumor. Zohaib was given a clean bill of health a year ago (Congrats, Zohaib!).
Aside from this, his grandmother works as a primary care physician in Michigan, his uncle works as a physician at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh, and Zohaib recognizes that they are affected by low supple of PPE items as well. His thoughts are with his family during these hard times and figured he could make a difference locally, at least.
Zohaib’s Recommendation: According to Patch, “[Zohaib] recommends that they first get the medical facility to draft a letter indicating that the volunteers are collecting the items on behalf of health care workers.”
Zohaib’s goal is to motivate other kids to do the same, feel free to make a call, and start your own PPE drive today!
A special thank you to the hotels that were willing to donate to these heroes:
- Hilton Garden Inn
- Embassy Suites
- Aloft
- Courtyard Marriott Dulles
- SpringHill Suites
- Hyatt House
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