When the 50th annual Greater Hartford St. Patrick’s Day Parade steps off from the State Capitol, marchers and spectators will each have their reasons for being there. Some, like grand marshal Elizabeth “Liz” Lynch Saunders, will be celebrating Irish heritage. Others will be relishing an opportunity to attend this popular outdoor event after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic.
Hartford HealthCare’s CEO Jeff Flaks will be marching for 33,000 colleagues.
Flaks, who is being honored as the Central Connecticut Celtic Cultural Committee’s 2022 Person of the Year for his leadership during the COVID-19 crisis, sees the parade as a symbol of community effort and teamwork.
“This past year shows us all what can be done when a community comes together during the most challenging times,” he said. “This honor must surely be shared with all people working in health care today, who worked diligently throughout the pandemic. Their courage, their excellence and their commitment is beyond inspiring.”
The parade takes place as Hartford HealthCare marks the two-year anniversary of treating its first COVID-19 patient, who arrived at Hartford Hospital on the evening of March 13, 2020. Since then, more than 11,500 patients who were hospitalized due to the coronavirus across Hartford HealthCare’s seven hospitals have recovered. Countless others have benefited from Hartford HealthCare’s outreach efforts, COVID-19 tests, vaccines and boosters.
“I am awestruck by the heroism of the colleagues I work with every day,” Flaks said. “As humans, we are wired to run away from danger and disasters; but healthcare workers run into crises, put their hands together and find a way to make things better. They are living out a special calling, and they do not shy from difficult tasks. They are heroes — every day.”
The St. Patrick’s Day parade is a signature event for the Central Connecticut Celtic Cultural Committee, which describes its purpose as “fostering, promoting and celebrating the cultural and historical contributions of Irish and Irish-American individuals and groups in Central Connecticut.
