Thread by @GovKristiNoem

I recently had a chance to visit with a single mom, the mother of two young girls, from another state. Her state is locked down. Her little girls are doing 100% distance-learning. She is working full-time from home. And she is struggling. (THREAD 1/)

She could balance the two... at first. But now, it seems like this horrible situation will never end. I could hear the fatigue in her voice, and I could see the anxiousness on her face. She is fed up, angry, and in need of some relief. My heart hurt listening to her story. (2/)

#COVID19 has posed lots of new challenges for all of us.

I’d like to remind everyone that at our core we are neighbors, and we're in this together. The woman in front of you at the grocery store or the man at the pharmacy could be going through a lot right now. (3/)

In South Dakota, we are so fortunate to have had the opportunity to approach this virus differently. To allow businesses to innovate, schools to open up on time, and not resort to a lockdown. But that doesn’t mean people in our state aren’t having a hard time too. (4/)

Please help your loved ones focus on the good things we have in our lives, and maybe reflect with gratitude on how fortunate we are to live in the modern world. A threat like this can break us down – or it can make us truly appreciate the many blessings we have. (5/)

If there’s anything we all can rally around at the moment, it’s that we all have a common enemy – this virus. It’s okay to be scared, worried, or fed up. But at the same time, we can also pour ourselves into our families, our neighbors, our communities. (6/)

Please hang in there. My hope is that, despite this horrible situation, we all find a way to make the bonds of community stronger. To remind us of what is important in life. To remind us of three things: faith, hope and love, and the greatest of these is love. (7/7)