SALEM, Va. – Charlie Fogleman is a respiratory therapist at LewisGale Medical Center. Little did he know when he started working there nearly 20 years ago, that’s where he’d meet his wife, with a little help from a coworker.
“She’s like hey, my daughter is going to start, I think you all should go out,” said Fogleman.
The matchmaking mother said the same thing to her daughter Shana. But at first, she wasn’t confident in her mom playing Cupid.
“She said there’s this guy at work that I’d like for you to meet. And I was kind of not impressed with that because you know when your mom picks somebody out, maybe there’s some sympathy there,” said Shana.
The setup was a success.
“The first time that I met Charlie, I was like, ‘Okay mom, alright,’” she added.
Charlie and Shana married in 2015. Now, Shana is the Nurse Manager of Progressive Care. Their marriage to each other is as strong as their dedication to the medical field.
“There are some days that we don’t get to see each other, or we see each other for two hours, and it’s time for bed and we get back up,” explained Charlie.
The pandemic put extra stress on healthcare workers. With their four-year-old son Sawyer at home, the Foglemans leaned on each other.
“The hardest part is being here, knowing what we know, seeing what we see. and the people who don’t do well and then you have the son who’s in the same parking lot,” he added.
From the hospital to the home, their LewisGale love story continues.