Items

• 
  2020-11-03

  NYC Celebrate President-Elect

  In New York City, people gathered on street corners after the 2020 election was called to celebrate the President-Elect, Joe Biden. This video was shot by my sister, Catherine Sweeney. The pandemic made this year’s election a very important one for many people, as their jobs, relationships, school, and health were all affected by the decisions of the new president. As a relief to many, the candidate with a solid COVID and public health plan was elected. Joe Biden wants to find a unified coronavirus strategy and create a Medicare-like public insurance plan. Over the last few months leading up to the election, many celebrities and influencers have been urging people to get registered to vote, educate themselves on the candidates and issues at large, and take part in democracy. This year, many Americans, including myself, voted using mail-in ballots. Others showed up in masks on voting day and waited in socially distanced lines, to make sure their vote was counted. It took several days longer than usual to announce the winner because states had to process so many mail-in ballots. This goes to show that democracy carries on in a pandemic.
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  2020-10-05

  Jewish Melbourne: NCJWA (Vic) Sukkot zoom event for Seniors Festival

  "We are honoured to take part in the upcoming 2020 City of Port Phillip Seniors Festival. As part of this online event, a special Zoom Sukkot celebration is being organised by NCJWA Vic. Rabbi Yoni Reyder will enlighten all the participants about the traditions and significant of Sukkot; and a Concert of traditional Russian and Yiddish songs will be performed by Gregory Cveigoren and Vered Harel. “We will present the different aspects of Sukkot which symbolise we are different but also strong when we are together” said Nellie Khoroshina, Golden Age Clubs Coordinator."
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  2020-10-12

  Jewish Melbourne: TBI visits their Chatan and Kallah Torah for Simchat Torah at home

  "Mazal tov to Craig Levin and Sue Silberberg, our Chatan and Kallat Torah for 2020! To celebrate their incredible contributions to our community, we took Torah to their homes. During our a Simchat Torah services each also shared some thoughts about the past and future of our community. Watch our video here: https://youtu.be/4mALluYXlis"
• 
  2020-11-19

  Father and Son Graduation Celebration

  It was the fall of 2019, and the celebration was on for graduation. Two Air Force Veterans are standing side-by-side for a father and son picture. This moment represents the sky is the limit, and the only thing to do is to move forward and continue with a masters program. Continuing with my higher education meant a continuation in life events for my dad. COVID-19 and his untimely death was not foreseen for the new year of 2020. This will always be a happy time of our lives.
• 
  2020-11-17

  Jewish Melbourne

  We had a beautiful celebration for my daughter's Batmitzvah that was not how we imagined or planned it to be. Despite the restrictions, we were blessed with a simcha that was overflowing with yiddishkeit, connection, Jewish history, music, family, love and tradition.
• 
  2020-06-16

  Class of 2020 Celebrated by a Rural Community

  The rural community of Tuttle, Oklahoma honored their class of 2020 high graduates with a sign made out of a round bale of hay. The round bale was located just off of State Highway 37 next to the Tuttle Grain & Supply. As part of the creativity, the bale had a sign saying: "Class of 2020" with comments such as "Proud of You!" and "Congrats!" as well as "Great Job!" The sign then covered the face of the hay bale in the design of a large face mask. The community was acknowledging the circumstances that altered the 2020 senior year and graduation to be a smaller event.
• 
  2020-10-02

  Socially Distanced Formal Event

  HIST30060 This is a photograph of myself and three other final year Undergraduate students at Ormond College, The University of Melbourne, taking a socially distanced group photo before "Club Dinner." During non-COVID times, this is normally a major event for students and is one of the most anticipated events of the year. Given COVID restrictions, the dinner was not able to run as normal, but students still took the opportunity to dress up in formal clothing and share socially distanced dinner and drinks. Personally, this photo is one of my favourite to come from this year featuring my friends and I, because it shows an adaptation to abnormal times. It is, I suppose, an attempt to find normalcy.
• 
  2020-11-07

  Boston Celebrated Joe Biden's Victory in the 2020 election

  This moment is an important moment in American history, as it marks the end of a tyrant. However, it's important to me because it will hopefully represent a shift in the handling of this pandemic, meaning we can get back to a regular life sooner. Donald Trump has not handled this pandemic very well, giving our country the highest one-day increase of any country and the deaths of nearly 250,000 people. I hope that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris's inauguration will America get back on the right track. Their current plan for handling the pandemic looks very promising, and I cannot wait for them to work I also think that its really cool that my sister now has a role model that she can look up to in the White House, and while Ms. Harris may be the first, I am sure that she won't be the last.
• 
  2020-11-04

  Happy 21st

  HIST30060 A person’s 21st birthday (whilst not as big a deal in Australia as other countries) is still considered an important milestone. I, like many other people in Melbourne, had the pleasure of experiencing my 21st birthday in lockdown. Friends were not invited. Family could not visit. Instead, I spent the day at home with only myself, my sister and my dog. I feel like this picture accurately represents what the time was like. Dead. Not literally, of course, but life had grinded to a halt during this period. And yet, that day was one of my happiest. Maybe because it gave an excuse for people to contact me. A theme I think runs through a lot of the pandemic. Because we could not meet physically, social interaction through technology became a lot more prevalent. And who doesn’t love being sent cupcakes?
• 
  2020-10-06

  A Muted Rosh Hashanah

  Every year, I attend the High Holy Day services at Temple Agudas Achim with my mother. The services are long, emotionally exhausting, and beautiful; this is when the shofar (a ram’s horn) is blown. This year would have been slightly different because the Rosh Hashanah began on Shabbat, but the High Holidays were also impacted by Covid-19. Instead of meeting in person with the entire congregation - hundreds of people, most of whom I don’t see throughout the year - the services were held via Zoom. Because many of my congregation avoid technology on holy days, there were less than 50 people participating in this year’s services. Rather than 3 hours long, services this year lasted about an hour. When the shofar was blown, it was heard through a computer screen, which failed to capture the awe-inducing power of the horn. As someone with ADHD, the High Holidays are usually tough for me. I struggle to focus during the long services, becoming fidgety after an hour. In the past, my mother and I have celebrated the holidays privately, attending a retreat, or simply spending the day together at home. When we celebrate this way, I can draw on my tablet - drawing has always been a source of comfort and focus for me. In the temple, multi-tasking is frowned upon, as it is seen as disrespectful and sacrilegious. Yet recognizing the holidays this way is unfulfilling for my mother - she misses the community of our temple and yearns for the sound of the shofar. Because of Covid-19, we both got a little of our preferred way to worship. Watching the live stream and participating via Zoom allowed my mother to re-connect with temple members whom she had missed. Yes, the meeting was lacking in many ways, but it was better than not attending at all. I was able to stay off-screen, listening to the service while drawing. It was during the service that I drew the image I titled “A Muted Rosh Hashanah”, which depicts a young girl attempting to blow a shofar through a protective mask. With this drawing, I hoped to convey the beauty and passion of the shofar, as well as the pain and longing that the pandemic and social distancing has caused.
• 
  2020-08-11

  Video Chat Birthday Celebration

  The pandemic disrupted the frequent trips I take to visit my friend Chrissie in California. We planned on celebrating her birthday together in person, but since we both lived in hot spots we decided it was best to postpone our festivities. I used some of the money I would have spent on traveling to buy her some very personalized gifts. When she received her presents I asked her to meet me on the Houseparty app so that I could see her reactions. They were priceless. I commissioned an artist friend to draw her beloved cat Dulce which I then printed on a poster. To add a Texas touch, I also got her a James Avery charm bracelet with an inside joke engraved on it. Even though I would have much rather hung out with Chrissie in person, this celebration was still special. Being away from made me think about how much I love and appreciate her. Quarantine allowed me the time to reflect on what makes her unique and what gifts would put a smile on her face.
• 
  2020-05-17

  Graduation during Covid-19

  My sister has been working so hard for the past two years; late nights and difficult early morning labs. She earned the title nurse practitioner. The pandemic hit a few months before her graduation and she would work the front lines while taking the last push towards graduation. As expected her graduation was cancelled and she was mailed her practitioner license. My family and I thought that her hard work deserved a proper celebration so we planned a way for our family to get together but follow all the proper precautions. We saw those drive by celebrations and planned one of our own. My grandmother demanded to be apart of the crowd at home to be closer to her granddaughter and no could tell her any different. This is one of the pictures from the celebration.
• 
  2020-05-10

  Graduation 50 Years Apart

  In this photo, I am holding a picture of my deceased grandfather while I'm dressed for my undergrad graduation that did not happen. I wanted to take a picture in my regalia on the campus that we both studied at, but due to the pandemic, I was forced to finish my undergrad degree at home. This photo in my regalia reminded me that I could not celebrate this accomplishment at the same place that my grandfather did only 50 years before.
• 
  2020-06-14

  A Distanced Graduation

  The image above shows the window of the Peaks Island Library, where the town celebrated their graduating seniors with a “Congrats class of 2020” sign. Surrounding the banner are the names of the high schools the students attended. Since the shutdown began just months before my class was set to graduate people all over the state have been putting up signs and decorations to give us a celebration. We had virtual commencement speeches, videos, lawn signs, balloons, and free pizzas that in a way made the year more special than a normal walk across the stage.
• 
  2020-04-08

  Pesakh in lockdown

  Pesakh was going to be a large family event. We had people coming from London, Canberra, Sydney and of course, Melbourne. Then the pandemic hit. No-one could travel, and we were not allowed any visitors in our house. So, we set up a zoom Seyder. We had members of the family join Zoom from London, Lund (Sweden), Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne. It was a huge success.
• 
  2020-07-25

  Arras, Rehas, Oxygen Mask

  This describes another take on being a bride during a pandemic: a bride worried if she will walk down the aisle, or into a jail cell, or be wheeled into a hospital bed
• 
  April 10, 2020

  Emma Ouellet’s 103rd Birthday in Quarantine

  Family members of Emma Ouellet gather outside her window to celebrate her 103rd birthday. The post description read “We just came back from wishing my 103 year old belle mere a bonne fête pandemic style in Montreal. It was heart-breaking to not be able to kiss her in person but we blew a huge bouquet of them her way.”
• 
  2020-04-08T17:00

  Seder for 2!

  I normally go to my sister’s place for Seder. She has 22 people attending! This is the first one I’ve done at home & I’m 60!
• 
  2020-07-12

  Graduating during the pandemic

  This personal journal tells what is it like for me, graduating during the pandemic. With ways of celebrating this milestone totally changing, and with my mother having to work at the health center on that day, this virtual graduation experience was really different.
• 
  2020-07-01

  Police called in to shut down Canada Day celebrations at Mooney's Bay

  "Hundreds of people were on the beach and the surrounding area Wednesday afternoon and evening. One officer on scene told CTV News that at one point, there were close to 3,500 people in the area. "Witnesses say there was very little physical distancing." "Just after 8:00 p.m., police were called to the Mooney's Bay area, where they started turning cars and residents away. Around 10:00 p.m., the City requested the site be closed immediately, citing health concerns and disorder issues."
• 
  2020-04-22

  Coronavirus Cake

  We consider our nanny to be part of our family and she was part of our quaran-team. Her April 22 birthday posed a particular challenge for a cake. We would normally visit Ambrosia Bakery, but with more time, we decided to bake it instead. With extra raspberries on hand and some Valentine’s candy about to go out the window, we threw together the SARS-CoV-2 cake to celebrate the unusual times of celebrating in quarantine.
• 
  2020-05-28

  Coronaland: Roots of Music's graduation

  2600-block of Burgundy, Roots of Music's graduation Due to COVID, this wonderful program couldn't have its traditional graduation so they moved it outside. As a supporter of Roots of Music I got an email about it and was happy to be "in the audience" for this group who, tho they're only graduating from 8th grade, play on the college level
• 
  2020-05-21

  Coronland: Happy 60th Uncle Bill

  Outside Prytania Theater, Happy 60th Uncle Bill How sweet and cute and thoughtful, I thought, and probably never would've been done had we not all been quarantined causing reduced traffic on Prytania
• 
  2020-05-29

  Princeton High School Drive-In Graduation

  The fourteen graduates of Princeton High School’s Class of 2020 sit six feet apart as supporters watch the graduation ceremony from the confines of their cars. After months of coordinating distance learning efforts and planning for graduation amid ever-changing guidelines, there was an incredible sigh of relief knowing that this challenging school year was over. Although staff members and graduates alike were celebrating the end of a difficult journey, there is no denying the uncertainty as to what lays ahead. Graduates are entering adulthood at a time when the economic outlook is bleak, the college experience is altered, and the threat of illness is troublesome. Certainly, the academic response to COVID-19 will redefine education, proving just how irreplaceable physical classrooms and in-person interactions are to our students.
• 
  2020-05-30

  Happy Mother's Day Sign

  A painted sheet reading "Happy Mother's Day Mom I Miss You! Love, Nathan" hangs from a fence in the Bywater neighborhood.
• 
  2020-05-15

  AP US History Exam Celebration Social Distance-Style

  The day of the AP exam is usually a huge celebration, where I decorate the room for a giant pre-party, with every kids' name on the wall, cupcakes, brownies, balloons, confetti - the works. It is always a surprise for them - then we take a picture in our matching t-shirts, they go test, and afterwards (around lunch), they come back and we have a post party. This year, this could not happen. I made each of my 175 students a TikTok, and then we had a zoom after the test. The celebration is usually one of my favorite days of the year, as it is so important to me to celebrate my kids' achievement, regardless of what the score says in July. It feels so empty not having that moment together.
• 
  2020-05-23

  Ladies and gentlemen, the graduating class of 2020!

  My sister-in-law began working on her AA degree in 1997. As life took her in new directions, she never completed the degree. In 2016, as a mother of 3 and the Director of Human Resources for a foodservices company, she decided to go back and finish the work she once started. She completed her work in December of 2019 and our entire extended family eagerly awaited the day that we could watch her walk across the stage and celebrate her, as she has celebrated our academic milestones. Unfortunately, her graduation ceremony was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Not wanting this moment to pass by uncelebrated, we decided to host a virtual graduation party for her. We made her a "Congrats Grad!" poster, a money lei, hunted down a cap and gown, and even had mom sew a stole complete with the year and institution embroidered on it. We had our family dress up and join us via Zoom. We had her girls blindfold her and get her ready, and then walk her to a computer to join the Zoom call while Pomp and Circumstance was playing. It wasn't the graduation we had originally envisioned for her. However, it is one we will always remember. There were cheers, laughs and tears. And I am certainly glad that we did not let this moment pass us by.
• 
  2020-05-09

  A Birthday To Remember: Celebrating With A 50 Participant Surprise Zoom Party!

  We were invited to partake in a surprise Zoom call for a dear friend's 39th birthday. Our friend's partner asked all attendees to arrive to the virtual party 10 minutes before the official start time of 7 p.m. with a favorite celebratory drink in hand. Over 50 participants arrived on time for the call and stayed as long as 2.5 hours. Friends connected via the messaging chat function of Zoom, as well as through live video. Since we are unable to show our love for someone in person during the COVID-19 shelter-in-place, it is heartwarming that people still choose to show up the best they can for those they love.
• 
  5/11/2020

  Homemade Diploma

  This image showcases the efforts made to preserve the celebrations canceled by COVID-19. It is a homemade diploma made to celebrate my husband's graduation that was canceled.
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  2020-05-04

  Transmission of Wisdom: The Marshall Scholar Class of 2019 Meets the 2020 Class Over Zoom

  The COVID-19 pandemic is unique in the way it disrupted a world more globalized than ever before in history. The Marshall Scholarship is funded by the British government as a living gift to the American people in honor of the Marshall Plan, which helped rebuild Britain after World War II. The scholarship allows young Americans representing a cross-section of academic fields a to study for a graduate degree at a British univeristy. The 2020 Class of Marshall Scholars, the second largest class in the program's history, class will be among the scholarship's most diverse, represent a wide diversity of cultural, academic, institutional and socio-economic backgrounds. Over one-third of this year's class are from minority backgrounds and 61% of this year's class are female scholars. The pandemic has thrown much of the traditional process of the scholarship into re-evaluation, as questions of how the scholars will travel to the UK, whether they will need to quarantine upon arrival, and how their academic programs will be altered still loom large. This scholarship is a life changing opportunity for these individuals, with the pandemic threatening to drastically alter a program that has generated transatlatic leadership in mutlifarious fields whose work has sustained the Special Relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for decades, one of the most important and dynamic international relationships in the world.
• 
  05/16/2020

  Family Waiting for Graduation Ceremony

  A family sits together while waiting for the graduation ceremony to start. Even during times of crisis, it is essential that celebrations and recognition of achievements continue.
• 
  05/16/2020

  Drive-By Graduation Party, New Orleans, LA

  After I heard an unusual amount of honking, I stepped outside my home to see my neighbor decked out in her graduation cap and gown with an arch of balloons waving to friends and family who drove by in a series of cars honking and holding signs.
• 
  2020-04-01

  "Coronavirus postponed Pride, so the party is going online. Here's how to celebrate"

  This article notes the shift from Phoenix Pride to a new virtual Pride event. From the article: "To fight the spread of the new coronavirus, Phoenix Pride 2020 was postponed. But members and allies of the LGBTQ community can still celebrate this weekend, online from the safety of home."
• 
  2020-05-05

  Saginaw Chippewa Indian Tribe Asks Tribal Graduates of 2020 for Pictures for Casino Marquee, Honoring While Social Distancing

  “Let us celebrate you! We want to display your picture on the Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort marquee!” #IndigenousStories
• 
  05/17/2020

  No More Different, Please

  I really want more than really anything right now to go back to my usual routine and especially go back to swim practice. I am really fed up with doing different cross training to try to make my swimming not suck. It feels like even though I have been swimming competitively for seven years like I am not a swimmer. I haven’t even been in the water or gone to a practice in almost two months. I really don’t like how even if I go outside and go to a store that is open everything is so different and I can’t help wondering if these changes are going to last. Today I woke up I think the latest I have ever woken up. The difference is that when I saw how late it was, I jumped out of bed and got straight to work. I finished my workout so early that I got to make doughnuts. If COVID-19 had not happened I would have not learned all of the recipes I got to learn. However, I might have had my championship swim meet and been a better swimmer. *Original text in Creator: Nicole Dumitrascu #LSMS #NSD
• 2020-05-18

  The Impact of Virtual Story Time During Coronavirus Stay-at-Home Orders

  The Impact of Virtual Story Time During Coronavirus Stay-at-Home Orders COVID-19 has put the world on pause in many ways, including forcing people to remain in their houses for months on end. While staying inside and away from others is for the safety of oneself as well as their communities, it’s easy to feel the urge to leave. In order to stay inside and keep everyone safe, then, it’s crucial that we all find ways to fill our time. For students, this means trying to navigate online classes and keep up with friends that they otherwise would have been seeing everyday. For some adults, this means trying to balance a job that is now entirely online with taking care of the family. For many, it means desperately filling out unemployment forms and waiting in line for hours on end to be given the food they need to feed their kids. This time at home is different for everyone and by no means easy for anyone, but one of the most commonly talked about groups right now is families with young kids. Not only do the parents not have to manage their kids all day long – feeding them, helping them with online classes even as early as preschool, and keeping them entertained – while also trying to handle their own jobs, but many of the kids don’t even understand what’s going on. As young kids, they want to be able to go to school and play with their friends, but they’re now restricted to their houses like everyone else. In order to help parents and entertain the kids, then, many teachers and celebrities are recording videos of themselves reading in order to create a virtual story time. While some of the videos are meant to teach the kids about why they have to stay home and what’s happening in the world, most are meant to simply entertain the kids and give their parents a little break. As insignificant as it may seem for a teacher, librarian, or celebrity to record themself reading a book, hundreds, if not thousands, of people have started doing it and it serves as the perfect time of relief for both young kids and their parents. Gretchen Grewe, Fordham University, SOCI 2800
• 
  2020-05-13

  Kitchen table haircuts

  My friend drove down from Idaho to visit. She's been in isolation for weeks, we've been in isolation for weeks and she decided the best way to celebrate the end of the semester was to drive to Tempe. She also is a certified cosmetologist, and none of the hair salons are open, so we all got kitchen table haircuts.
• 
  04/02/2020

  Show support to our Chicago Front Line healthcare workers of there bravery during this time.

  This is an image that that tells us in our stay at home order to show support for our healthcare workers celebrate there bravery by leaning out of our window or stepping outside and creating some noise at the same time 4/8/2020 at 8pm to show support. Photo poster of what to do to show support in Chicago for our Healthcare workers
• 
  2020-05-09

  Class of 2020 Car Processional

  With the rest of the school year canceled at Sacramento’s McClatchy High School, the school staff is making sure that the class of 2020 doesn’t leave without fanfare. Students drove slowly through William Land Park, cars decorated and horns honking, as staff members dressed in the school’s red and white attire cheered and handed out signs for students to display in front of their homes. “These kids aren’t getting a ceremony, so we wanted to make sure we still celebrated them somehow. And it’s a chance for us to say goodbye since we won’t see them again at school. It’s so heartbreaking,” said a teacher.
• 
  2020-04-12

  Easter Labradoor Retriveres

  Easter Sunday pictures for Brooks and Baker
• 2020-05-08

  Drive-By Birthday Party

  First responders wish a 7-year-old happy birthday
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  2020-05-07

  Flag Celebrates High School Graduation, New Orleans, LA

  A flag hangs outside someone's home celebrating the graduation of a student from McKinley High School. During the Covid-19 stay-at-home order, students will not be able to attend graduation or host large parties to celebrate their graduation. This flag is a creative way to recognize the graduate's accomplishments publicly.
• 
  2020-03-16

  Day Trip to Sedona before Quarantine

  My friends and I took a trip to Sedona for the day in order to celebrate senior year before the lockdowns and stay at home orders were issued #cshsecon
• 
  2020-05-05

  How COVID-19 changed my life.

  A personal account of the pandemic.
• 
  2000-04-28

  Birthday in quarantine!

  My twin brother and I celebrated our birthday in quarantine! Our parents dropped of some cake and we had a zoom party with them later that night. It is crazy to think that this might be our "new" norm when it comes to large gatherings.
• 
  2020-04-28

  Birthday in quarantine

  I celebrated my birthday in quarantine! My parents dropped a cake off and we had a zoom call with them later that night! It is crazy to think that this might be the new normal (at least for some time).
• 
  2020-04-30

  Safford High School Seniors Mural

  This image demonstrates an alternative way to honor the 2020 senior class that is unable to attend their graduation due to COVID-19. It shows how the pandemic is affecting traditional graduation ceremonies. This is at my local high school.
• 
  2020-04-12

  Easter Sunday on Zoom

  Danielle Gonzalez celebrated Easter with her family through a Zoom call. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, she was unable to see her family for this holiday. Even though they couldn't be there physically, they still saw each other virtually and that was enough. The Zoom call was full of laughter and love!
• 
  2020-04-30

  Graduate of 2020 sign

  Today my family put up this sign for my sister, since she won't be getting a proper graduation this year. She won't get to walk across a stage, but this way we can still brag to the neighbors about her accomplishment! #REL100
• 
  2020-04-06

  Celebrating One Year During Pandemic

  My wife and I were married in April of 2019. We live just outside the greater Seattle area which was hit fairly hard by COVID-19. Following the state's "Stay-at-home" order, we celebrated our first wedding anniversary at home with the traditional eating of the cake(or cupcakes in our case) a year later. As you would expect, the cake tastes nothing like it did the first time we shared it but it gave us an opportunity to reminisce on our wedding day. While we couldn't celebrate the way we would have liked, we still laughed, ate a terrible cake, and made lasting memories.