Praying with our feet
Tonight I walked with a woman named Sheila. We marched with her fellow Union health care workers from a rally at Bethany Lutheran Church to Riverside Hospital; you may have seen it on the news. I spent the time talking with Sheila, who agreed to let me tell you her story; I hope it inspires you to continue doing whatever you are doing to work for a better world.
Sheila grew up in Mississippi; at 24, she was living with her mother, working a fast-food job, and looking after her baby boy. She told me it was hard to leave her mother, but she decided to come to Minnesota for a better life and a better job, 14 years ago. Today, Sheila works as a nurse’s assistant at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, and is proud to talk about her daughter, in 9th grade, and her son, who is studying film-making at MCTC. With state aid, she pays for an apartment in Bloomington, and was recently able to purchase a car to get her more easily back and forth to work. Sheila is now a Union member with SEIU, and was recently chosen to serve on the negotiating committee as workers at Abbott and other Twin Cities hospitals move to bargain new contracts. Sheila is still unable to afford health insurance for herself and her children, and told me as we marched that she hopes to win health care not only for herself but for her co-workers.
Tonight was certainly not the first rally or march I’ve attended. But tonight was the first time I marched as a Jew, wearing a kippah (I was the only one as far as I know). As we sat down to eat pizza in the church basement afterwards, Sheila saw me begin to pray and asked me to say it out loud. So I said the motzie, with more emotion than I usually find in myself, and she said amen. We talked about our families, traded stories, and after a while, she said she needed to get back to her daughter.
I walked back to my car, lost in thought and emotion. After such a journey, and years as a health care provider, Sheila cannot afford health insurance herself, and relies on state aid to pay her rent. She put her faith in exodus and hard work; I can’t help but feel that our society has failed her in some fundamental way. But I’m not sure Sheila would agree. She is speaking up, taking leadership; she and her fellow Union members are challenging our society to take a hard look at those who are overlooked, and to treat them fairly. In 2003, 45 million Americans went without health insurance. I think about my parents who will retire in the coming years; I think about prescription coverage, and a promise that we ought to make to all who dwell among us. I hope that we’re all strong enough to join people like Sheila in the coming years, and pray with our feet. Shabbat Shalom!
Sheila grew up in Mississippi; at 24, she was living with her mother, working a fast-food job, and looking after her baby boy. She told me it was hard to leave her mother, but she decided to come to Minnesota for a better life and a better job, 14 years ago. Today, Sheila works as a nurse’s assistant at Abbott Northwestern Hospital, and is proud to talk about her daughter, in 9th grade, and her son, who is studying film-making at MCTC. With state aid, she pays for an apartment in Bloomington, and was recently able to purchase a car to get her more easily back and forth to work. Sheila is now a Union member with SEIU, and was recently chosen to serve on the negotiating committee as workers at Abbott and other Twin Cities hospitals move to bargain new contracts. Sheila is still unable to afford health insurance for herself and her children, and told me as we marched that she hopes to win health care not only for herself but for her co-workers.
Tonight was certainly not the first rally or march I’ve attended. But tonight was the first time I marched as a Jew, wearing a kippah (I was the only one as far as I know). As we sat down to eat pizza in the church basement afterwards, Sheila saw me begin to pray and asked me to say it out loud. So I said the motzie, with more emotion than I usually find in myself, and she said amen. We talked about our families, traded stories, and after a while, she said she needed to get back to her daughter.
I walked back to my car, lost in thought and emotion. After such a journey, and years as a health care provider, Sheila cannot afford health insurance herself, and relies on state aid to pay her rent. She put her faith in exodus and hard work; I can’t help but feel that our society has failed her in some fundamental way. But I’m not sure Sheila would agree. She is speaking up, taking leadership; she and her fellow Union members are challenging our society to take a hard look at those who are overlooked, and to treat them fairly. In 2003, 45 million Americans went without health insurance. I think about my parents who will retire in the coming years; I think about prescription coverage, and a promise that we ought to make to all who dwell among us. I hope that we’re all strong enough to join people like Sheila in the coming years, and pray with our feet. Shabbat Shalom!
posted by Jewish Community Action Staff at 9:34 AM
1 comments
