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Veneration

On Thursday 26th March 2020 at 8pm, Annemarie Plas stood outside her door and clapped to honour the NHS. She was not alone. She had spread the word on social media, and her idea went viral. Millions of people across the country now join together every Thursday at 8pm and applaud our NHS workers, our carers, and our key workers. They are the glue holding the country together, helping us survive and battling the coronavirus.



I posted on Facebook to ask friends and family to record the Clap for Carers near them, and the response was brilliant. People both near and far sent me their clips, including friends who work in the NHS. Below is a short compilation of these clips, created to honour and respect those who are keeping us going.




 

John Krasinski, better known as Jim from The Office (US) or Lee Abbott from A Quiet Place has taken to YouTube to share good news during the pandemic. His make-shift news/talk show, filmed from his home, features incredible stories from around the world: stories celebrating our successes, lifting our spirits, and praising our key workers.


Teenagers around the USA should have been enjoying their proms, but all events were cancelled. Krasinski gathered together some top artists, like Billie Eilish and Chance the Rapper, and live-streamed these kids a prom they would never forget. Just two weeks later, he hosted a graduation celebration with Oprah Winfrey and Steven Spielberg.


This is the trailer for his show, and I urge you to watch it every week. It is immeasurably heart-warming and just what we need in these unprecedented times. I can't promise you won't tear up a little.



 

A Welsh artist, Nathan Wyburn, put a call out on social media for NHS staff to send him selfies for him to use in a collage to thank them for their hard work and dedication. He received over 200, and created this:



The messages and social media shares I’ve been having is very overwhelming, but it really does go to show the respect out there for our NHS heroes - Nathan Wyburn

 

Another way people have come together to venerate our key workers is through music. BBC Radio 1 created the Stay Home Live Lounge, where dozens of the industry's biggest stars collaborated (from their homes) on a cover of the Foo Fighters' song, Times Like These. The single hit No. 1 in the charts, and all proceeds are going to charity.



Some artists are creating new songs to boost morale and pay respect to our keyworkers. Alicia Keys has released a new single - Good Job. This premiered on CNN and pays tribute to all of the unsung heroes holding the fabric of society together. The Greatest, sung by James Blunt, is another track which honours those on the frontlines. UK profits from this single will be donated to the NHS.




 

A compilation of people venerating our key workers would be woefully incomplete without a mention of Captain Tom Moore. Captain Tom won the hearts of the nation when he set out to raise £1000 for NHS Charities Together, a collection of charities that work together to support our NHS workers with wellbeing packs and mental health support, and electronic tablets to help patients stay in contact with loved ones. Captain Tom pledged to walk 100 laps of his garden by his 100th birthday. In just 4 days this donation goal was met, and so he raised the target to £5000, then £500,000. After 10 days, he had completed his 100 laps, and on his 100th birthday, the donation total exceeded £32 million.


How inspiring that this one gentleman did something as simple as walking around his garden and raised £32 million for NHS Charities Together. However, Captain Tom didn't stop there. For his birthday, he collaborated with Michael Ball and the NHS Voices of Care Choir to sing You'll Never Walk Alone. Proceeds from this single will also be donated to the charity. Less than a week before his 100th birthday, the single topped the UK charts.


Captain Tom now has two Guinness World Records: a fundraiser raising the greatest amount of money with a charity walk, and the oldest person to hold a No. 1 single in the UK charts. His birthday celebrations were marked by an RAF flypast, a personalised card from the Queen, and greetings from the Prime Minister. He was made an honorary colonel by his old army regiment from World War Two, the 1st Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment. Not only is Captain Tom a celebrated hero, but he is an inspiration to many, with hundreds of people raising money for his cause.


His JustGiving page is closed now, however you are still able to donate to NHS Charities Together here. So far, a staggering £42 million has been raised between all of these amazing fundraising efforts on the JustGiving platform.



 

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