By Danielle Mceachern, 30, is a pediatric nurse at Peterborough City Hospital. She experienced a miscarriage during the COVID-19 pandemic. But she continued to work despite her personal heartbreak.
Now, she is a finalist in a national “Community Heroes” competition. Danielle worked on the front line throughout the pandemic, regularly dressed in full PPE for over 12 hours a day. She miscarried at 11 weeks in April 2021.
Despite the tragic news the 30-year-old continued working to support her team who were short-staffed. She became pregnant again in August.
The competition is being run by Big Motoring World who is awarding the winner either £1,000 or a £500 fuel voucher. More than 200 nominations were put forward during July and this was whittled down to five particularly deserving candidates, including Danielle.
After discovering that she’d been shortlisted for the prize, Danielle said: “Working in a poorly paid profession, you only really become a nurse to care, and because you have a passion to help others. Support from colleagues stands out – they are an extended family that only each other know what we have been through. We laughed, we danced to get us through the long nights, and we shared tears, hugs and words of support through the tough days. Seeing people get better and children get their twinkle back is what kept me motivated though. Winning the fuel voucher would mean we could do more family trips over the next year whilst on maternity leave, to visit loved ones in Bournemouth, Scotland and Wales with the baby and our two dogs. It would allow us to make special lasting memories of our own.”
The giveaway idea was inspired by Big Motoring World’s group CEO, Peter Waddell, who was sleeping rough on the streets for many years before building the brand over more than three decades. Darren Miller, Marketing Director at Big Motoring World explained: “We’re excited to arrive at the business end of this giveaway, and scanning the list of finalists, it was clear to us that any one of them would be a very worthy winner. We were so pleased to see so many Brits engaging with this competition and nominating their everyday heroes who they believe deserve a financial boost during these hard times.”
Danielle is currently leading the votes but only by a small margin.
