The River Thames outside DLD College London

From The Principal #76

3rd April 20

I often talk about the strength of the DLD community and how fortunate we are to be part of such a strong support network. This week, our remaining boarders who are in lockdown in College, together with the Houseparents spent an evening creating posters to thank the NHS staff. They are now posted onto the classroom windows facing St Thomas’ Hospital for their staff to see every day. The hospital trust Tweeted us to say how much this is making them smile.

This display of support from our community has had wide reaching consequences – being reported across various news outlets and media channels across the world, from ABC News in the US to BTA in Bulgaria and today, as backdrop to the Guardian’s own headline news webpage.

Houseparent Sheila, has extended our offer of support further by offering to add any rainbow posters made for NHS Nightingale which cannot be accepted by them.  Such displays of community, compassion, kindness and strength for the greater good are invaluable lessons to our students. From these actions, they take with them for the rest of their lives the true sense of what it means to be part of a community.  If we learn one thing from this virus, I hope that this goodness and desire to fulfil a better purpose will stay with them for the rest of their lives.

Wherever you are in the world for this Easter break, I wish you a very happy and safe couple of weeks. And as we are missing the daily in person contact with our students so much, we have put together an Easter message video from us all at DLD which you can view below.

#BeKindAndStaySafe

Irfan

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