A Note about Diversity.

Our country is currently struggling in many ways with issues of race, sexual orientation, religion, gender identity, national origin and economic class. Yet, among the many extraordinary things I saw during the six years I served as a chaplain to the uniformed personnel of the EMS division of the FDNY was the way in which every patient received the same level of compassionate, professional care. Be they a homeless street dweller or a resident of a multimillion dollar apartment, each and every one was treated the same way.  The delivery of emergency medical care by the EMTs and Paramedics with whom I worked was devoid of preferential or “discriminatory” behavior.

 In creating the Caring Hands Project, I decided that not only did life casts of the hands of the emergency workers deliver an incredibly powerful message but there was nothing about these works of art that would identify the person from whom the life casting had been made.

 It is not our intention to have photographs or images of actual EMS personnel as part of the installations. This keeps the focus on the message of the caring hands and of people touching other people.

 The Caring Hands Project transcends any of the issues that divide us today. Its purpose is simply to honor the work of the men and women who deliver emergency medical care to millions of people every year across the country and around the world regardless of any labels or descriptors.

Rev. Joseph J Nicholson