On this Tuesday, July 2, episode of Sundial:
Florida’s Agriculture Commissioner On COVID-19
Gov. Ron DeSantis has made the message loud and clear that Florida has no plans on rolling back, even as the state continues to see thousands of new coronavirus cases every day.
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Agricultural Commissioner Nikki Fried is taking a different approach, she’s been calling on the governor to implement a statewide mask mandate.We spoke with Fried about her thoughts on the state’s response to COVID-19 and the virus’ impact on agriculture.
Being A Nurse And A Mother During A Pandemic
The majority of nurses across the country are not responsible for treating coronavirus patients. But their work is harder right now because many patients are waiting too long to go to the hospital.
Alison Geisler spent six years as a registered nurse at St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa, working in the cardiac intensive care unit. On top of the challenges of being a nurse, she’s also a single mother with an 8-year-old daughter, Brooklyn.
“But every job comes at a price and sometimes the price doesn’t outweigh the other end. If I got my family sick there’s nothing in this world that would make this job worth it,” said Geisler, adding that she is gratefully to have a job.
In this audio diary, Geisler reflects on the challenges she faces as a nurse and as a mom during this pandemic. You can read more about her story here.
Live Virtual Jazz
The pandemic has brought many things to a halt, but not music.
Nicole Henry has performed at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York and in more than 30 music festivals. Up next, she will be performing online this Fourth of July weekend. She is one of the leading jazz vocalists across the globe, three of her songs reached the top ten of the U.S. Billboard Jazz Charts.
"That song is a question," says Henry about the U.S. national anthem. "Oh say can you see? Can you see? Can you see what we could be?"
Henry will be performing live virtually this Sunday with Nestor Torres and Sammy Figueroa, through the Global Arts Project. You can see the livestream from the event below.
