Help celebrate Sacramento’s Unsung Heroes during the coronavirus crisis. Nominate here

We are in trying times. Many have lost their jobs due to the spread of the coronavirus and the unprecedented stay-at-home orders. We are isolated from the ones we love.

Yet, society continues to function — in large part due to the effort of our friends and neighbors who often don’t get the attention they deserve.

The young woman stocking shelves at Raley’s.

The man mowing his neighbors’ lawns for free.

The teacher spending hours every day checking on his students.

The chef who’s kept her restaurant open to keep her employees working and her neighbors fed.

These are Sacramento’s Unsung Heroes.

Starting this week, The Sacramento Bee will profile these Unsung Heroes every week, with stories publishing on Mondays and Fridays.

We hope to inspire with these stories. That’s part of it. Mostly, we’re hoping to give credit where credit is due. To say “thank you.”

»» Read about our Unsung Heroes here.

We have a team of journalists at The Bee who will be dedicated to telling these stories. That’s where you come in:

Please, if you know of someone who deserves some attention for their heroism, nominate them in the Google form at the bottom of this story. You can also email nominations to heroes@sacbee.com.

We’re partnering with the office of state Sen. Richard Pan, D-Sacramento, to promote these heroes. Pan’s office has been highlighting the work of local Unsung Heroes every month for the past five years, and we’re grateful to be working with him on this effort.

When life returns to normal, we’ll plan to celebrate these Unsung Heroes in a public gathering. And we’ll work with Pan’s office on that celebration.

In the meantime, thank an Unsung Hero.

This story was originally published April 21, 2020 at 5:00 AM.