April Runner of the Month: Dawn Maldonaldo
Congratulations to our April Runners of the Month! During this difficult time, we are featuring two of our runners who are medical professionals here in NYC.
Dawn first joined NBR in July of 2018 when she first moved to LIC. She was struggling to find people to run with and was on the hunt for a group. "I’d always seen people with the cool black and white NBR logos at races, and when I realized their runs started nearby, I had to join!" Dawn has run 2 marathons with NBR and is a frequent runner at Tuesday Night Tempo and Saturday Narwhals.
What is your job and where do you work?
I am an internal medical doctor, currently in residency, and specializing in critical care medicine. I’m working at Elmhurst Hospital, currently managing both ICU and ED patients depending on my shift.
How is your daily life right now?
Daily life is kinda crazy. I’ve never seen so many deaths. Never before done so many chest compressions. Never before had to call family members so many times to give them the terrible news their loved one just died. Never before had to make the decision not to intubate someone just because we only had one ventilator left.
Has running helped you cope during these scary times?
I think I’ve worked about 18 of the past 20 days, so I’ve only gone for 2 runs during this time. But each time I do, it’s such a good time to clear my mind and release energy.
Any inspirational thoughts or uplifting stories to share?
Everyone in medicine at Elmhurst (which is about 60 of us) knows about NBR now because you guys have given us so many donations of food, coffee, and even homemade cookies and cake! One of the residents lives in Brooklyn and now wants to run with NBR just because he realizes how great you guys all must be! Honestly, the messages, kindness, food, and coffee help me way more than PPE because it’s such a morale booster. It’s what really keeps me going, because I can’t believe how generous you all have been! It’s lifted other people’s spirits too! You guys are absolutely amazing!
Thank you Dawn and the rest of our essential workers who are making huge sacrifices for the community.
