危机中的援助之手

欧文康考迪亚大学 roommates 汉娜•霍普金斯 ’20 from Camarillo and 安娜曹国伟 of the Imperial Valley weren’t sure what to do when 欧文康考迪亚大学 shut down the campus in mid-March as part of the nation’s COVID-19 response.

“我们说，这有点可怕，”安娜回忆说. “我们和朋友们一起度过了这一年剩下的时间.但是第二天, Hannah received a text from a friend about an opportunity to help a lab at the University of Washington process COVID-19 samples.

“We wanted to do something other than sit around,” Hannah says. “The only other option at that point was to go home and not be productive, 所以我问安娜是否想去西雅图, 希望她能疯到跟我一起去. It felt like a really good opportunity to serve and get experience in a lab, so we went for it.”

“我宁愿去帮忙也不愿什么都不做，”安娜说. “It feels wrong to be idle when we’re equipped to do something to help.”

在几天内, both were living in a hotel near the University of Washington campus and working night shifts in a secure lab. 安娜说这种变化让她有点迷失方向.

“有一天，你是博彩平台网址大全课堂上的学生, and all of a sudden we’re in Seattle in this giant lab,安娜说. “一下子接受了很多东西.”

Their main job was to process nose swab samples for people testing for COVID. This required prepping samples to go into machines which checked for target DNA that indicated the presence of the virus.

“There was a sense of purpose because each swab represented a person,安娜说。. “Some doctors called wanting results so they knew how to proceed. It was pretty rewarding work, to know we were helping and filling a need.”

他们作为学生所做的实验室工作 康考迪亚·欧文的生物系 使学习曲线不那么陡峭.

“I had real-world experience from my Concordia classes,汉娜说。, who also served as a teacher’s assistant 在欧文的康考迪亚大学. “The biggest thing in the lab in Washington was to take initiative to learn and get things done. I feel like Concordia prepared me for doing science in the real world.” Both women say the support of 欧文康考迪亚大学 professors motivated them throughout the experience.

“Our professors were incredibly supportive and saw it as a good opportunity for both of us,安娜说。. “他们一直在检查我们. 我们经常和他们通电话. Having that support system behind us was really wonderful.”

“Anna and I wouldn’t have had the courage to go unless our professors were saying, “是的, 大胆尝试吧,’”汉娜同意.

It feels wrong to be idle when you’re equipped to do something to help.

他们在漫长的夜班期间在那里结交了朋友. And once the lab scientists saw that they wanted to gain 技能, they took time to teach them.

“I learned a lot from the medical lab scientists, the people operating the machines,安娜说。. “They caught on that I wanted to learn and wanted the experience, 所以他们一有机会, 他们告诉我们他们在做什么. I now have the knowledge of how equipment works which will be really useful for me in the future.”

Some nights, the team of lab workers processed 1,000 samples. 一个月内, both Hannah and Anna were promoted to shift leaders, 确保实验室正常运转. 令人惊讶的是, both were full-time students throughout the experience, finishing up their coursework 在欧文的康考迪亚大学 remotely.

“Your body hates you for putting yourself through that,安娜说。, who was carrying 18 units 在欧文的康考迪亚大学 while working at the lab. “我们的睡眠时间太混乱了. Keeping up with schoolwork — it was exhausting, mentally and physically.”

汉娜大部分时间都在跑步. She had competed on the Golden Eagles track and cross-country teams all four years and served as captain of both, but COVID shutdowns ended her collegiate athletic career.

“My favorite part was going to meets and being with the team,她说。. “When you are on long runs with your teammates, that really does bond people. I was hoping to run and place in the 5k at conference and all of a sudden that goal was cut short. But I’m not done running, so there will be other races and other goals.”

After two months, both women went home for a break. 安娜在夏天回到了西雅图. She is taking a year off from school to work full time at UW as the speciman processing lead at the lab. She says the opportunity has illuminated a potential career path.

“亲自体验实验室, now I know I can do it and I would like to pursue it as a career,她说。. “It was very eye-opening and made me realize what I’m supposed to be doing. 这是非常富有成效的.”

Hannah graduated in May with a BS in biology and is now at Baylor University pursuing her PhD in cellular, 分子与疾病生物学.

“I’m really thankful for the opportunity we had in Washington,她说。. “我们学到了很多东西，遇到了很多很棒的人. It has given me more confidence going into a PhD program. 这对我很有帮助.”

---

---

---

---

We are proud of Hannah and Anna and their great demonstration of the values, 技能, and service that make our students so valuable to the world around us. To learn more about 欧文康考迪亚大学's response, please visit 崔.edu/coronavirus.