Niccole Hyatt : A Comforter During Covid

A Caregiver by Choice

Makers

You remember the first quarter of 2020, don’t you?  Of course you do!  It was dystopian.  Over a 68-day period the Center for Disease Control (CDC) confirmed the first U.S. case of COVID-19 and a Public Health Emergency.  The World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic, and people were in a panic everywhere. Some were trying to make their way back to their home countries, others were stuck on cruise ships, and most were stacking up on toilet paper, hand sanitizer and disinfectant spray. And let’s not forget, we were also focused on an upcoming election. But down in Savannah, Georgia amidst all this madness, and among the southern live oaks, palmetto and magnolias, there was a woman thinking about us and how “the ordinary parts of our lives are still important during an extraordinary time.”

In mid-March, a week or so before the U.S. Senate passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, a text arrived on my phone.  It carried a simple heading, “Today’s Invitation,” a few doable calls to action, and an uncomplicated closing, “Join me!” A text just like it arrived every single morning until March 17th the following year.  It was the committed and dedicated work of Dr. Niccole Y. Hyatt.

Selection of Daily Invitations from Niccole Y. Hyatt

So, here’s the story…

In March of 2020 Niccole was in Zagreb, Croatia when she heard all flights from Europe to the U.S. were going to be cancelled for 30 days. She returned home within 24 hours. Believing she might have encountered someone with Covid-19 during her air travel, she self-quarantined for three weeks. A researcher by nature and profession, Niccole read a great deal during that 21-day period. After learning about a social worker who died at home alone Niccole knew she wanted to reach out to people so they would know she was alright, and they were alright.  As a social being who was suddenly homebound, she realized, “the pandemic was very lonely.” She made a commitment, and The Pandemic Support Project was born. 

The project was a daily invitation for self-care. Each contained an exercise goal, a fun activity, something related to a holiday or activism and something we might forget due to the stressors of the pandemic, such as hydrating, getting our income tax paperwork together or setting our clocks forward.  Niccole’s original intention was to send these invitations for two or three weeks to a core group of family members and friends. But things don’t always go as planned.  The core group began to share the invitations with others via text, email and social media. As a result, requests came in to be added to her daily list and ultimately over 200 people received the daily invitation for 365 days.  While Niccole had only two intentions, “to keep in front of people that the ordinary parts of our lives were still important during an extraordinary time,” and “to let people know they still had control over many things,” the results of her selfless deed were deepened friendships, new relationships, more phone calls than texts or emails, mentoring and the sharing of business ideas. 

Reflection: In a tree pose on Tybee Island.

Joy: In Maurice Harris’ floral environment at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art.

Passion: A hummingbird cake with cream cheese frosting and toasted pecans. Yep! She made it.

Activism: At the Ride & Rally in tribute to Ahmaud Arbrey and in support of his family.

When asked how she took care of herself during this period, Niccole responded, “I kept my sleep routine and followed a weekly bath ritual.  I spent time outside with a specific group of friends, and for my birthday I invited a musician friend to perform in my driveway for other friends and neighbors.” Niccole is a woman who knows her way around a kitchen. She said, “during this period I also got more creative with my cooking, especially with pastries, which I shared with friends and neighbors.” Throughout the year Niccole also prepared and delivered meals to older adults in her community and for the musical birthday celebration she packed individual BBQ lunches for her guests. Reflecting on our conversation Niccole stated, “I wanted to come out of this pandemic better than I went in. Through these rituals I believe I have, and the pandemic has made me more creative in problem solving.”

So, March 17, 2021 rolls around and we receive our daily invitation—along with a note that it will be our last—and the closing, “Continue to do great things.”  We mourn our loss and move on. Then twelve days later, at 8:00 a.m., I hear the familiar twitter of a text arrival.  It contained one word of inspiration, “Blessings.” And almost a year later, while the Omicron and Omicron BA.2  variants are still a threat, a word from Niccole continues to arrive every Monday morning as a balm in Gilead.

Coming Soon

Niccole was asked to host a Daily Invitations podcast, but she passed on the idea.  She is, however,  working with a Dean at Franklin University in Columbus, Ohio on the publication of 30 days of Daily Invitations for Caregivers.  

In The Background

Niccole is an award-winning college professor, a published author and public speaker. In addition to teaching domestically, she also teaches in China, Croatia, Kosovo and Dubai.  She sits on the Board of Directors for Give, Build, Share, an organization building primary schools in Ghana, and on the Communications Program Advisory Board at Franklin University.  Here interests include cooking and entertaining, and she is a car enthusiast. In celebration of her 2021 birthday, Niccole added a Maserati to her collection.

Photos courtesy of Niccole Y. Hyatt

© Jelani Bandele 2022