Frontline couple in Thunder Bay, Ont., gives toddler daughter to grandparents during pandemic

For people who work on the front lines of the Covid-19 pandemic, this is an especially scary time.

The work place is now the potential home to an unseen threat. It is a virus that can impact both the workers and the people they love.

When two partners in a home are frontline workers, this creates even more complications.

This is exactly the situation Tom and Corine Armstrong, of Thunder Bay, Ont., have found themselves in.

Tom is an officer with the Thunder Bay Police Service. Corine is a nurse practitioner. Both fields have a high potential risk of contact with Covid-19.

The Armstrongs also have an 18 month old daughter named Harper. Since late March, Harper has been living away from her parents. It was a gut-wrenching decision the couple felt they had to make.

"Three weeks ago this was starting to become more of a concern," said Tom. "All the messaging was coming out about social distancing and self isolation. So we kind of started talking about it and just realized that because of what we do for work we didn't have the ability to self isolate and always practice good physical distancing as we maybe should."

Because the Armstrongs were both at a higher risk, that put Harper at an elevated risk. The concern over Harper's health was huge, but then that was coupled with the child potentially going to daycare, as well as to various family members.

The path on which to proceed became clear, although it would have to involve the full cooperation of Tom's parents Ted and Jean. They agreed, and Harper made the move.

"The emotional aspect of this was hard," said Tom. "But it was the common sense thing to do. My parents can stay at their house. They can be there and they can be safe and they can self isolate there. I can bring them what they need and the risk of contracting this virus is slim to none. We are incredibly grateful (to my parents) for taking her because we know she is safe."

For now, the Armstrongs check in with Harper several times a day. Sometimes via video chat, other times through the living room window glass of Tom's parents home. Armstrong said Harper is always happy to see them and shows off her toys and what she has been playing with. He said because of her age, Harper doesn't really know what's going on and was used to being with his parents anyway.

"It would be a scary spot for some people that have to go to work and don't have somebody that was available," he said. "I mean it a pretty big ask, and we are lucky to have that option that is for sure."

As heart-wrenching as it is for the couple not to be able to hold their daughter, they have accepted that this situation is the best for her. They also know, it may be a while before their family unit is back together.

Armstrong said he and Corine want to share their story so people understand why following the physical distancing and self isolation guidelines is so important. .

"I want our little family home and together and healthy," he said. "The longer people continue to ignore what they are being told, or go out for anything but the bare necessities, the longer this will continue, and the longer we will be in this heartbreaking spot we are in."