To protect her family from COVID-19, this ER nurse moved out
Peggy Freemark and her colleague are living nearly rent-free in a house in Kanata
Peggy Freemark isn't afraid to admit she's worried about COVID-19.
As a front-line nurse now assigned to the emergency department at Ottawa's Queensway Carleton Hospital, she's at an elevated risk of exposure.
"If I had a choice to go and help or not do anything, then definitely I would go and help. But I'm just as scared as everybody else out there," Freemark said.
"Frankly, I don't want to be near anybody who has COVID-19. But that's my job. I have to care for people. But I'm scared. I'm scared for my family. I'm scared for my co-workers, because we're gonna be right in the thick of it. It's just hard. I'll do it, but it's hard."
I mean, young people are dying. I'm 55 years old. What if I get it? What if I die?- Peggy Freemark
The fear usually takes hold when Freemark is driving to work.
"I get in the car and I just cry because I'm worried sick that I'm going to get this and pass it on to someone. I mean, young people are dying. I'm 55 years old. What if I get it? What if I die? Every morning I get in the car I start to get nervous. Your stomach gets a knot."
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She's especially worried about exposing her seven-year-old granddaughter Ava, who lives in the same house in Stittsville. Ava is medically fragile.
"She's got congenital heart disease and she's had two surgeries. I worry that I could somehow bring [COVID-19] in the house and it could affect her somehow. It's always in the back of your mind that there could be problems when you have a child with an illness like that. So I wanted to protect her."
To protect Ava and the rest of the family, Freemark has decided to move out. She posted on Facebook that she and a fellow QCH nurse who also wanted to protect her own family were looking for a place to live. Within a day, her post had 1200 shares.
And just like that, "a gentleman offered up his home" in Kanata, Freemark said. He's not asking for rent, just utilities. "I'm extremely grateful."
It's a temporary arrangement, though just how temporary is anyone's guess. "We're hoping by the end of April we'll be home," Freemark said. "Is that wishful thinking? Probably."
So why would a complete stranger give over his house essentially rent-free?
"His mother. His mother was a nurse at the hospital years and years ago. She's long retired. He said he's always had respect and admiration for nurses, and he wanted to do something to help.... He's staying with his partner so he just felt it was a nice thing to do."
It's early days yet, and Freemark expects it will get harder to be away from home, "but right now it's fine. I feel quite comfortable, and maybe it feels like I'm on a little mini-vacation."
Ironically, she and her new roomie are travelling companions, and would normally be planning a "girls' getaway" around this time.
"This is our trip this year. We were in Arizona last year. This year we're in Kanata."
