America Together: Uplifting images of Americans pulling together during coronavirus pandemic
Every day and in every community, the coronavirus pandemic is bringing out the best in Americans. Take a look at some inspiring images of Americans pulling together in a time of crisis.
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Quarantine Routine is a regular feature that asks political, business, sports and entertainment power brokers how their daily lives have changed -- and how they're still doing their jobs -- during the coronavirus crisis.
Nate Boyer knows how to handle the unexpected and is using his military background to help get him through the coronavirus pandemic that has affected many Americans.
Boyer, a former Green Beret and Seattle Seahawks long snapper, told Fox News on Wednesday the uncertainty of what the day would bring during his deployments helped him prepare for tough situations.
The Merging Veterans and Players (MVP) Foundation founder said he was grateful for some of the luxuries many people have to help us through the pandemic and for having the technology to stay connected with each other “at the drop of a hat.”
Boyer went into detail more about his life in a Q&A with Fox News.
Fox News: How has your daily routine changed since social distancing measures began?
Nate Boyer was a Green Beret before signing with the Seahawks. (Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports
Nate Boyer: It’s changed a lot. I live in Los Angeles usually. I’m always going around town taking various meetings and working on special television projects or helping run our MVP charity chapter. So all that stuff is completely changed. We got to do everything virtually. Thank God we’re living in an era where we have the opportunity to stay connected and still communicate with people across the globe at the drop of a hat.
What I’ve done to take advantage of the time is focus on a lot of projects and developing a lot of projects. Going back to stuff I’ve kind of put aside even for the last year or two and like rehashing that out and sort of strategizing and gameplanning about how, when this thing is lifted, how can I take advantage of that kind of lull in the industry. So that’s been a big part of it and I’ve also tried to focus on working on some meditative practices that I don’t normally do.
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Fox News: What are the biggest challenges in doing your job during this crisis?
Boyer: I think one of the top challenges for me is keeping other people motivated. I’m usually pretty good at being resilient and innovative and kind of adjusting to climates. I think it helps that I got a few combat deployments. So when you’re over on a deployment you don’t have control over a lot of stuff. You have a lot of restrictions on what you can do. The schedule is not really up to you, the climate dictates it. Stuff changes day-to-day and you gotta be very flexible. And then you also get into this mode where it’s a lot of hurry up and wait and that’s kind of what it feels like now. I’m sort of used to it so I do have an advantage there.
One of the biggest challenges is how can I keep my team motivated and how can I make myself available to people at all times? How can I not get stuck in a rut? And get too complacent and just kinda want to sit back and wait this whole thing out. That’s not going to work for me. I think this challenge … it can be taken advantage in some ways if you’re the type of person that finds those silver linings and understands that a lot of people are going to shut down. This is a time where you can gain ground. I really want to impart that with people who I’m working with and people that I care about so that they feel that sort of power too.
Boyer played for the Texas Longhorns (Evan Habeeb-USA TODAY Sports)
Fox News: What do you miss the most about how you did your job before this began?
Boyer: I’m a big face-to-face person. I love meeting people face-to-face – whether it’s grabbing a beer, grabbing something to eat, going on a hike … or just meeting in somebody’s office. Face-to-face actions are huge for me and I think it’s important and I know thrive in those situations because I know sometimes I’m not the greatest at explaining something if they can’t feel my passion. I get stuck on how to perfectly articulate something versus just being open or vulnerable about what it is I’m trying to do.
I also miss, quite honestly, being able to go to the gym. Working out at home is cool. I can do it. I’m running a little bit more. But I miss the gym. I miss going in there and being able to hit the weights and do a little boxing and stuff. Being with buddies and working out in a team or a group. Definitely miss that.
Boyer said his military background has helped him prepare for uncertain situations. (AP)
Fox News: What surprised you most about how life has changed?
Boyer: I’m definitely surprised it’s lasted but I get it. I understand and I think it’s just a challenge. I look back at other generations and I think back to the men who fought in World War II for instance. They grew up during the Great Depression. Some of them were not even born yet or just young children during the Spanish Flu pandemic and they went off and fought in World War II and then they came back and went to work.
I feel really entitled when I think about those people. I think like, all right our generation needs stuff like this. At times, we need some challenges. It’s good for us. We need to understand it’s a luxury – most of the stuff we have at our fingertips. We are very fortunate. I think that alone will help people be grateful for technology and not just so much take it for granted. I hope, anyway, they realize if I didn’t have this I don’t know what we would do. We wouldn’t be able to work at all. We’re still able to get a decent amount done, keep up on stuff.
But also the dangers of the power of it that we need to be aware of when we talk about the way information is passed … stuff can spiral really, really quickly. I hope we gain perspective out of this as we keep going. Sometimes, things like this need to happen to toughen us up a little bit.
Life’s pretty good. We live in a great country. We have a lot of incredible opportunities here and it’s important for people to recognize. When things open back up, take advantage of those opportunities and do the thing you always wanted to do and be a better person. Be a better neighbor – get to know your neighbors. I think that’ll be something maybe will change a little bit. And also, just be conscious about the way you treat other people.
JACK YOUNGBLOOD, NFL HALL OF FAMER, ON HOW CORONAVIRUS HAS CHANGED HIS DAILY ROUTINE
Fox News: How do you blow off steam?
Boyer: I’m working as much as I can on some of those film and TV projects and kind of developing stuff that I’ve wanted to get at for a long time. I do like to work. I like what I do. And I’ve been kinda going for a run or go for a hike if I’m able to. I’m doing that stuff by myself for the most part because you’re kind of supposed to anyway. That’s a big thing for me. Phyiscal activity really does help me blow off steam and reset especially when I start to get stressed out or if I feel overwhelmed or confused about something. It’s a good switch to hit on a daily basis.
I’m up here in southern Oregon right now. I escaped California for a bit. I’m up here with my folks. Just spending time with them is something I don’t get to do as often. We’ve been hanging for a good month now and doing some yard work here and there with them. Trying to fix up the house up here that’s kind of been left for the last couple of years. Little things like that just kind of help refocus and shift your attention from things that frustrate you and things you really can’t change. That’s just the reality. All you can do is do what you can do. You can’t change the way everybody does things. You can’t change what’s happened. This thing is real, it’s going on and we gotta deal with it. So what’re we gonna do? Are we just gonna sit on the sidelines and let it kick our butts or are we gonna do something about it?
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