Chicago bakery owner closes shop, returns to front lines as ICU nurse

One Chicago nurse turned bakery owner has closed her business to return to the front lines in the fight against COVID-19.

"I have the knowledge and I have the skill," said Kate Merrill, owner of Edge of Sweetness. "People need help. It's kind of like when you see somebody drowning and you're a great swimmer, why would you not go out there and help them?"

Before she was a small business owner, Merrill was a nurse for 22 years. After seeing that her community needed her help, she decided to return to Mt. Sinai's Intensive Care Unit.

"Now is a good time to be good, so if everybody offered a little bit of goodness it would help everything," Merrill said.

She goes into work two to three times a week and said she's never seen anything like this before. So she's taking every necessary precaution to make sure she and her family are safe.

"I've probably seen more death in the last two weeks than in my last two years there," Merrill said. "One day you think they're doing better and an hour later it's a totally different story."

Merrill's not sure how long she'll continue working at the hospital, but she's happy to serve her community in any way she can.