The Hearts Project Founder and Artistic Director, Monica Moore, had the chance to visit with a man in his early twenties about the time when he and his classmates were informed in March 2020 that classes would shift to remote learning.
These Pottsville High School seniors had no idea such news would change plans for how they had to mark an important right of passage: graduation. For this high achiever, not much time would pass between receiving the news of how covid was spreading and hearing that he had done enough to stop attending school for the remainder of the year. He, and others like him, had demonstrated enough mastery of the required high school subjects to warrant giving them the rest of the semester off. This would not be the only thing in his life he would come to miss in his senior year.
Things became “warped” very quickly when he and his peers realized they would not be able to spend time together in their last days of secondary education, including participate in the much-anticipated senior trip. Even prom was canceled. And though graduation happened, the way in which the graduating seniors made their way to the stage was anything but typical.
For PHS graduation, family members wanting to gather to celebrate the occasion “attended” the ceremony by “streaming” it from home. Those who were “walking” that day waited in their cars and proceeded to drive up to the stage once their name was called. They each were able to ascend the stage once arrived, but then they pulled away and parked after receiving their diploma. To cap off the event, they each released balloons into the air, signifying something quite different than the celebratory act of throwing a mortarboard in the air. For the balloon, it never came back down. And, though prom was rescheduled for the fall, that is when this young man was navigating his way on a college campus for his freshman year—attending online classes in his dorm room at the University of Arkansas. The excitement for prom had dissipated by then; going seemed pointless.
So many things happened that weren’t according to plan for this college freshman. His initial dorm assignment, Holcombe Hall, was changed to become the place where students with covid would quarantine. And though he had looked forward to the “mingling” that would help him find friends and become acclimated to his new campus once he settled into his new reassigned dorm, it never happened. Those social events meant to help college students develop a sense of belonging were nothing like what he was prepared for: students wore masks, and they were six feet apart, creating an impossible distance between new freshmen searching for friends and community.
For this young man, he decided to move back home for several reasons: it didn’t make sense to be couped up in a dorm while attending a full-time schedule of remote classes; it would save money; and it meant he could be closer to his family and girlfriend. Though it could be easy to regret not staying on campus, surrounded by one’s peers, in some ways, the bottom line is that it made no sense to stay when those important cultural rites were missing because of sanctions created by covid.
Another important missed step for this young man during the pandemic, and so many like him we may never meet, comes from when he had to say goodbye to his grandfather in the summer of 2021.
His grandfather was a vibrant man for many years of his life: he loved the outdoors and adventure. He even became a Scout Leader, teaching young Scouts about exploring and survival. As time passed, he became infirm in old age. It was during covid when he had an unfortunate fall that was complicated by a chronic condition. This situation required a trip to the hospital, and he never made it back home. And though his grandfather didn’t die of covid, the pandemic forced separation and isolation during a time when most are surrounded by loved ones for emotional support.
For a 19-year-old who had never lost a vitally important family member prior, this was a formative experience—particularly so because he had to ride the elevator and walk the hallway to the hospital room alone--saying goodbye in isolation. In more typical circumstances, this young man would have been surrounded by his family, helping him take each step forward on the way to experiencing the many emotions associated with losing a beloved family member.
