YOUNGSTOWN, N.Y. — Like most nurses, Darrell Wright chose the profession for one reason.
"Just my desire to help people," he said.
He has been a nurse for the last 20 years, but has been working at Sister's Hospital for the last 12. However, putting his life on the line to take care of coronavirus patients also gave him a COVID-19 diagnosis.
"I was actually one of the most careful people on the floor," Darrell Wright said. "I was wearing a mask and gloves way before anyone else."
Wright went to Sister's Hospital on March 30 and spent the next two months being transferred between St. Joe's and Mercy Hospital. He spent four weeks on a ventilator. But this fighter won his battle, and was just discharged from the hospital on Tuesday.
"It is wonderful," he said. "It felt so good to see my wife. Then I took a nap today in a real bed. There's nothing like home cooked food."
As he's celebrating life's simple pleasures, his community is also giving this front line worker and COVID-19 survivor a well deserved "welcome back home" parade.
"It just blew me away. It just makes me feel so good," Darrell Wright said.
Even through all the stress that coronavirus brings, there is always faith.
"If that just brings hope to other people to see that somebody survived this, it's all worth it," said Sharon Wright, Darrell's wife.
Hoping to inspire and protect others is why Darrell Wright would do it all over again.
"It's important for people who have a calling to help other people," he said. "Without them, I wouldn't be here today."
It all came from a desire to take care of others that just never seems to fade away.
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