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By Lucy Lau

A new installation at Michael �������� (MGH) is encouraging staff to stop and smell the roses  ����  and daisies, lilies and carnations, to be exact.

The flowers �� all coated in red hues �� are part of a recently installed piece outside MGH’s Coxwell Avenue entrance. There, more than 800 blooms have been joined together to form a stunning eight-by-seven-foot-tall heart as a symbol of hope and gratitude to frontline workers.

“It’s beautiful, it’s bright,�� says Todd Kjargaard, owner of , which designed the installation. “It speaks a different language but we all understand it.��

The heart-shaped piece was organized by the and , a local initiative founded by communications and event specialist Amy Burstyn-Fritz. Launched during the pandemic, it engages florists to install vibrant installations at hospitals across Toronto as a visual way to thank healthcare providers.

Todd has worked on 10 of the 15 installations Feel Good Flowers has created so far. He says he’s been itching to design a heart so it was “perfectly kismet�� when he discovered MGH is known as the Heart of the East. “It was a coincidence, but it was a good coincidence,�� Todd says.

For Sarah Bingler, occupational therapist at MGH, the flowers help brighten what can be tough days at the hospital. “These little tributes and gestures from the community really do pick up your spirits and remind you that you’re part of a bigger picture of fighting COVID-19 and getting through this pandemic,�� she says.

Sarah says she appreciates the acknowledgement as she and her colleagues continue their duty of providing care on the frontlines. “It means so much to know that people recognize we’re doing this every single day, that we’re showing up, that we’re risking being faced with the virus and helping people who have contracted the virus,�� she says. “It’s helpful to know that people are thinking of you.��

The valuable work MGH is doing during the pandemic is familiar to David Benchimol, associate vice president of . The local real estate agency has supported the hospital during COVID-19, first by teaming up with property developers and architects to manufacture and donate 3-D-printed face shields to staff. Now, Fitzrovia has brought the Feel Good Flowers installation to life through a generous sponsorship.

“Michael �������� has been instrumental in the fight against COVID-19 and we’ve been happy to support them,�� David says.

He hopes the installation, which will remain at MGH for about two weeks, gives people “a reason to smile.�� “We hope this installation brings happiness and joy to people’s faces as they walk by it,�� David says. “And that it reminds the healthcare workers and patients that people care about them and the community supports them.��

It’s a sentiment that’s shared warmly by Jackie O Floral Affairs. “There’s a lot of stress right now,�� says Todd. “And I think it’s important for healthcare providers to know there are people out there who see their work and who recognize it and appreciate it.��