I will soon turn 81 years old and have always been an independent person. Since the middle of March I have lost my independence because I was advised to stay home due to the Coronavirus…

Caryn has owned and operated her in-home daycare for 27 years. Watching and caring for children is not only her life’s work, it is her passion. And she misses her daycare children as she has had to keep the daycare closed for the last two months due to the pandemic.

PJ sells and donates protective masks to people in Chicago and throughout the nation. For every mask purchased on her website, one is donated to a medical professional, nursing home or someone in need. PJ is also a business owner, and producing masks makes it possible for her staff to stay employed during the pandemic.

Harriet is the CEO of the Center for Enriched Living, a nonprofit providing opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. When the center had to close in mid-March, Harriet needed to ensure CEL’s members had access to resources and programming virtually and that the organization was secure financially during this period of economic uncertainty.

Since Illinois’ shelter-in-place order took effect, Peggy has been holding telehealth counseling sessions from her home, connecting with clients through video or phone calls. The remote appointments are challenging, as is trying to remain positive and supportive for her clients when she, too, is experiencing fear and anxiety from the pandemic.

Mike is a microbiology laboratory technician who tests the sterility of new and used medical tools and equipment. Lately, the demand for testing nose swabs and protective medical masks has increased. His company was also asked if masks worn by medical professionals could safely be cleaned, resterilized and reused.

Katy is a Chicago-area native who has lived on a Caribbean island for the last nearly 10 years. The country is now on lockdown due to the Coronavirus. Not only is she unable to visit family here in Illinois (and does not know when she will be able to see them next), she was also recently furloughed from her full-time, U.S.-based job.

I am Covid-19 positive. So for the last 10 days I've been resting and just trying not to be scared…

On March 13, we were told to start working from home. That same day, my daughter's best friend was killed in a car accident…

Michael is the owner and cofounder of a regional restaurant in the Chicagoland area. All of his restaurants are closed to the public, but still offering delivery and curb-side pickup. He knows the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic will have a significant impact on how restaurants do business in the future — from limiting the number of guests dining inside to requiring food servers to wear masks and gloves.

The fertility specialist clinic Kristin works at as a fertility nurse shut down a month ago due to the Coronavirus. She was furloughed as a result. Here, Kristin shares what is is like to be a registered nurse out of work during a public health crisis.

Tim is a city manager in Oklahoma - a state that as of last week is slowly beginning to reopen its economy. While Oklahoma has not seen large numbers of cases of Coronavirus compared to some other states, Tim is still concerned about the safety and wellbeing of the residents he serves.

In the five years Danielle has worked as an animal caretaker at her suburban animal control facility, she has never seen it so empty. Nearly every single dog, cat and other animal at the shelter has been adopted or placed in foster homes.

Charlie started a new job April 1. Because of the pandemic, his onboarding experience and new employee training has been completely remote. He has not met his coworkers in person yet seen where his desk is located in the Chicago office he will one day work in. But he also knows he is lucky to have a job at a time when so many Americans are losing theirs.

The Chicago hair salon Francesca works at has been closed for over a month. It temporarily shut its doors shortly before Illinois’ shelter-in-place order took effect in mid-March. For Francesca, that meant no clients and no pay for an unknown length of time.

Dave has been working from home as a database administrator for nearly 15 years. Here, he offers advice for those who are setting up a home office for the first time.

I am a junior in high school. Normally around this time I would be studying for SATs and ACTs and college searching….

The critical services Julie’s shelter provides to the homeless in suburban Chicago does not disappear during a pandemic. If anything, the need for those services becomes greater.

At eight months pregnant, Brittany will give birth to her first child during a global health crisis. The birth of her baby girl will look much different than she ever imagined.