This piece began with a call from a contact in my hometown, pleading for a spotlight on what was happening at the local hog processing plant amid the Covid-19 outbreak. CNN had been trying to report this story but had been unable to do so without connections inside the plant. I gained the trust of a handful of employees and sources at the plant and in the community; I used that trust to listen and share their stories, working with an incredible team across multiple verticals within the company. Community members reached out to me in the aftermath to say they believe CNN saved lives by pushing to tell this story.