With many working remotely this year, it’s been clear that work often happens behind the scenes. We might not see everyone out and about, but the work continues.
Then there’s the workers who were defined as essential this year, and whether they wore scrubs, or a hair net and gloves, we revered them for their dedication and for keeping us healthy and fed.
They forged ahead, pandemic or not.
There are the workers who kept flowers alive during a pandemic.
Cathy Hayen kept all of the thousands of flowers downtown looking beautiful. Hayen, the Aurora city government’s horticulturist, kept planters, and beds weeded and watered through the Spring and Summer.
Hayen worked to make outdoor dining areas attractive. Most recently, she added greenery to a vacant corner lot which added a touch of Christmas to an otherwise gray scene.
When we think of essential workers, we might not think of the person caring for the many downtown flowers, but luckily, we have Hayen, and our gardens thrive in what otherwise was a long and tough Summer.
There’s Abby Schuler, downtown services manager for the city government of Aurora, who is Hayen’s boss. Schuler deals with almost any issue that comes up in downtown Aurora. This year, that involved outdoor dining logistics and approximately 100 other things that came up that were brand new challenges.
Just a few days ago, a crew of workers contracted by Apex Tower and funded by Aurora Downtown took to the roof of the 22-story Leland Tower to replace a couple dozen light strands that had burned out on the lighted Christmas tree. It’s no easy feat, but it’s quickly noticed by many when the tree is dim.
Thanks to Aurora Downtown and the willingness of the Leland Tower management team, the Leland star and tree have remained lighted continuously since 2011.
It takes a lot of behind the scenes work to keep the trash bins emptied, the flowers alive, and lights shining brightly. They’re sometimes thankless jobs that go unnoticed, unless something is amiss, but these are the things that matter day-to-day in a quiet, or bustling, downtown.
Let’s hope for the latter in 2021.
Marissa Amoni is the manager of Aurora Downtown, a nonprofit of downtown property and business owners. Aurora Downtown pivoted with its events in 2020, and added a lot of virtual content. Joe and John from Vizo Arts were often behind the scenes and created videos for Sugar Skull City and Aurora Express. Those same events needed signage and posters, which Stephanie Wheatley, a graphic designer at Aurora Fastprint, helped to create at lightning speed. A special thanks to everyone who works to make the community better even (or especially) during a pandemic.