In a Fort Worth emergency department where the days are long and the stakes are high, staffers recently turned their attention to one of their own. This week, the team surprised a longtime custodian by telling him they had raised money to send him home to Colombia for Christmas. The worker, known to colleagues as Diego, had been worried that rising costs in the U.S. would keep him from his usual annual visit with family. The moment, caught on video by members of the team, highlighted how hospital co-workers step up for one another well beyond their clinical job descriptions
ER Team Launches Fundraiser, Delivers Big News On Camera
As reported by WFAA, emergency physician Dr. J. Mack Slaughter shared an Instagram video showing the moment the team told Diego they had raised money and started a GoFundMe to cover his travel costs. According to that reporting, the campaign had pulled in more than $9,000 toward a $12,000 goal as of Thursday. In the clip, Slaughter explains to Diego that the team did not want the cost of living in the U.S. to be the reason he missed Christmas with his loved ones.
The Essential Work Behind The Scenes
Diego works in environmental services, supporting the emergency medicine team at a Texas Health campus in Fort Worth. The hospital's location page lists the Fort Worth facility as one of the system's major sites in the area, per Texas Health. Colleagues say custodial and environmental services staff are crucial in keeping busy clinical areas clean, safe, and moving, even if they rarely end up in the spotlight.
Co-workers Rally To Keep A Christmas Tradition Alive
Co-workers told reporters that Diego typically sees his family once a year and sends money home, and they worried that this year the trip might be out of reach, according to WFAA. Rather than watch the holiday slip away, they decided to act, organizing the GoFundMe so he would not miss Christmas with his family. The fundraiser remains active as co-workers add donations and pass the video around the hospital community. Organizers say the money will go toward airfare and travel expenses so Diego can make the trip home.
In a hospital where clinical crises usually grab the headlines, staffers say the effort was a reminder that care teams look after one another off the clock, too. Diego's trip, organizers say, is expected to give him the time with family he has not had in a year, and to underline how a simple gesture can land like a major gift at the end of the year.
