DEAR MUM,
You left us and this earthly life on 18th August 2007 and before that so did your older sister Aldyth Richards who I affectionately called Aunt Tit.
Your youngest sister Aunt Yvonne is trying to make sense of what is happening in the year 2020.
The world is going through some perilous times due to something called Coronavirus or COVID-19 which apparently originated in China.
You are probably wondering what I am referring to knowing how intent you always were on increasing your knowledge of medical/health related matters and have every right to seek clarification. That will be explained later.
Answering the call
In 1948 Britain’s National Health Service was formed and not long after Aunt Tit in 1952, you in 1953 and Aunt Yvonne in 1957, as three sisters from Bath, St. Thomas, Jamaica answered the call of what was then referred to as the Mother Country to come and train as nurses in London.
Without a doubt you were trailblazers who paved the way for others to follow in your footsteps and so many have indeed done so. You all qualified as State Registered Nurses (SRN) and worked in hospitals in London.
With your thirst for knowledge you also became a State Certified Midwife (SCM) and made sure to mention that whenever I was not devoting enough time to my educational studies.
You explained the difference between a SRN and a State Enrolled Nurse (SEN).
GROWING UP: Tony Kelly as a boy
I cannot forget one of the experiences that you shared of a sick white patient on a hospital bed shouting ‘Take your black hands off me’ whilst you were caring for her and you continued the treatment even after such a racist outburst.
Education
‘The roots of education are bitter but the fruit is sweet’ readily springs to mind as your mother , my grandmother, Granny would say to me, ‘Go tek yuh book’ or ‘Hard work neva kill anyone’ since I wanted to play or to use a Jamaican saying ‘ramp’ outside with others.
I always remember as a child leaving you behind in England to travel on the Ascania ship in the early sixties for three weeks at sea with my late Aunt Vie and my first cousin Heather then only ten months old from Southampton docks to your homeland Jamaica.
Most of my formative years were spent being raised in Whitehall, St. Thomas by my grandmother and great aunt Mrs. Ina Watson who was affectionately called Sista. Such happy memories.
Now back to the COVID-19 a respiratory disease affecting the lungs named after the year it was discovered i.e. December 2019.
Pandemic
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared it a pandemic with nearly two million people infected and several thousand having died since the start of the year.
There has been an urgent call for retired health care professionals to join the fight as volunteers in an effort to assist the overstretched NHS staff cope with this terrible disease which for many has proved fatal.
The British press did a major campaign to alert the nearly 68 million people to the serious threat associated with this highly contagious disease and the need to wash our hands regularly, social distance, shield the elderly and others with underlying health conditions by means of quarantine and everyone staying indoors.
Interestingly not a single black and minority ethnic (BAME) health worker was featured in any of the national newspapers during that campaign and understandably it caused a huge outcry from the public on social media.
Racism
The racism of your time is still apparent and although not as blatant as back then, remains subtle since the powers that be continue to marginalize, dismiss and downplay the achievements of black healthcare professionals like you having contributed immensely to the National Health Service.
Many people are dressed like Batman and Robin, Spider Man or Phantom in face masks, eye goggles and even gloves (apparently the latter is ineffective) as fear grips the entire nation with make-shift morgues in abundance due to the high number of people dying daily.
Shivers
To cough sends shivers down the spines of those nearby as everyone becomes suspicious as to whether that person is contagious. Even clearing ones throat in public makes for some weird looks from strangers.
You surely would express your concerns regarding the advice being given now about hygiene standards as those were part of your Jamaican heritage, upbringing and every day way of life. So Britain has come full circle in that regard.
The proverbial saying ‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness’ seems apt.
In large cities huge entertainment venues are being converted into hospitals all named Nightingale after Florence.
Mary Seacole
There is no creativity of including the well known Jamaican nurse Mary Seacole whose statue was unveiled on 30th June 2016 opposite the Houses of Parliament in the grounds of St. Thomas’ hospital where Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson was treated after having caught the virus.
You would be the first to question why none of these make-shift hospitals catering for this pandemic as a mark of respect were not named after Mary Seacole considering all that she accomplished as a nurse during the Crimean war of 1853 to 1856.
Your words would be ‘What a crying shame on Britain’s inwardly looking approach.’
Dedication and commitment
I won’t bore you with the current statistics of black and minority ethnic medical staff in the NHS.
But rest assured it is much higher than in the 1950s when you and your siblings embarked on that epic adventure from Jamaica to play your part.
Yours and their dedication, commitment and unstinting service will always be remembered and not be erased in to oblivion nor should the current BAME health care professionals some of whom have paid the ultimate sacrifice with their lives whilst caring for the sick.
Yours,
Tony
Comments Form
36 Comments
Mr Kelly what a wonderful and at the same time sad story. This is something to remain in history for all those that maybe today didn’t experience or sometimes don’t want to remember because of technology and changes that made after the first nurses hard efforts
Absolutely brilliantly written . My mother was a nurse for a short time . We all have a story to tell about our treatment by certain people.
We still have far to go but there is no stopping us. Good to reflect.
I will share
A well written article Tony. It is often said” the more things change the more they remain the same”
Excellent reflection! I hope those who are in charge will read and heed!
Its give me great pleasure to read this article Aldith Richards is my aunty my father sister unfortunately I didn’t get to meet her but we used to correspond through letters and phone calls
Thank you Mr. Tobt Kelly for the information of you mother and her family dedication to the UK NHS service.
They were the backbone of the NHS and . Mary Secole you will not be forgotten either for you care and contribution in time of need.
These ladies were called and they answered
Thanks for reminding us of the sacrifices made for the betterment of people’s health and betterment of the UK on a whole.
RIEP the Kelly’s family and all those who have gone to rest.
The younger one who are carrying the batton and you abs try to be safe .
Blessings to you all, thank you Mr. Kelly
From my family, the community and self.
Walk good
Wonderful piece. Just to note Mary Secole is honoured in Surrey with first Mary Secole hospital opened at Headley Court.
A very good article Tony. You letter has represented the situation of many who traversed to the GB over the decades looking for a better life. Your piece is very touching as well as as informative. Thank you for sharing my brother.
Article well written Anthony. As a part of this family growing up l can relate to some of the comments made….
A very good article Anthony.A good reflection of home where we lived, ate the same food and embarked on the same teaching career. My mother Mrs Ina Watson ‘sista’ would have been delighted to read this and to see the great progress you have made.I am reminded of the quote “The heights of great men reached and kept were not attained be sudden flight …….
Kudos to you.
Tony thank you for reminding us of the long hard struggle that still continues. As a health care worker I too face the same blatant and most times subtle racism. Thanks to our manners and go upbringing we deliver our care with the utmost empathy and care, which says more about our character than the slights inflicted upon us. I speak not as one serving the NHS but under the OHIP here in Canada! The struggle is widespread. I thank you for reminding us with your tribute
Very interesting indeed, Tony. The memories live on.
Excellent article Tony, I could not stop reading until the end. Beautiful pictures to illustrate a capturing piece. I have so much respect for your family and all the other trailblazers who set an example for us by assisting the NHS so selflessly.
Thank you for sharing an eloquent and very timely piece.
Best regards
Dee
Excellent and heartfelt article. If not you Tony then who? will remind all about the contribution BME communities have made to the Great Britain. It was indeed disturbing to see the first ten health workers who died of Coronavirus were all from BME communities but none of BME staff were on the picture of news papers TV when the nation clapped for the NHS.
Thank you for sharing.
Tony,
Thank you for sharing this wonderful piece of your life with us. The history was remarkably interesting and the caring compassionate service given by Mommy and Auntie was solid gold. I believe this letter is the beginning of greater things to come. This information is too rich to hide under the bushel. Keep writing.
Nuff respect
Brother Kelly, thank you so much, for your very creative, reflective, insightful , historical and challenging representations, emerging from the ‘letter to your mother’. May her memories and contributions to the welfare and wellbeing of others through her NHS work, not be forgotten ! Thanks for raising some key issues and challenges we continue to grapple with. At the same time , you inspired us through highlighting what is possible , with hard work , courage, tenacity, compassion and purpose, all represented in the letter to your mother, where you also highlighted the work of your aunt. May you continue to be a champion of hope for those experiencing multiple health challenges.
May your mother’s legacy live on in you and others as we navigate through the challenges of living with structural inequalities.
Thanks again my brother – Keep doing what you do!
Walk good ??
Great story and more should be told.
This has got to be the foundation for a book Mr Kelly. This is my history too!!
Well written and quite informative Cousin Anthony.
Excellent article Tony. Informative yet poignant, a treasure for your family, and for others too.
Wonderful
Dear Tony,
Your story is so appropriate and tells the true story.Your mother was one of the forerunners and we have continued the journey. Thanks for the memories . This will give us the spirit to continue to gain the appropriate recognition for the contributions of BME staff in the successes of the NHS.
Dear Tony
Thank you for sharing your family history which I am sure holds resonance for so many of us. You write as you speak Tony, stirring memories, creating understanding and ensuring legacy.
Yes, my brother from another mother – History must be Ourstory
To your mother, aunt and all who answered the call and served with dignity and distinction, I humbly thank you.
Powertalk!!
Tony Kelly’s article is a gem. It is accurate, relevant and addresses problems now and then, which require further investigation. He should be featured in any forums dealing with matters of this nature.
Congratulations Tony, your mom and aunts must be really proud of the way you handled such a rich historic journal.
This is a wonderfully written piece Tony and one that will no doubt resonate with those who might feel forgotten. It also reminds us that we should celebrate and build on our achievements and not forget the ones of those who have passed.
I love the dignifying photos of your late mum, aunt and friend. The one of you as a boy is endearing, with eyes that still shine so bright today. I feel blessed to know you.
Tony, the story of your mom and aunt is the story of my own mother and aunt. Like your mother my mom always acted professionally in the face of severe racism, but I always roar with laughter when I listen to one of her friend and fellow nurse. “When he told me to take my black hands off him while I was injecting him I push the needle so hard it never stop till it hit the bone. That shut him up”
It was not all bad though, as one of my aunt was the ward sister in a hospital where she was probably the only black nurse and my mom worked as a District Nurse from the late 1960s until she retired in the 1990s
Thank you Tony Kelly for this wonderful article about your mum and your aunt and for the sterling service they gave to the people in their care, to the NHS and to the nation. This service is all the more worthy of our honour and respect when we recall the racism and prejudice that they encountered as they lived out their caring vocation. A powerful reminder that there is more work to be done but also that love is far stronger than the forces of fragmentation and division. The love and care of your mum and your aunt shine like beacons!
Brilliant &poignantly written ! U should submit it to the Gleaner for consideration of the Musgrave Pen Award.
Tony is a good friend of mine and his letter is very poignant in these dangerous times. A really lovely letter, raising some serious issues. As a white person I find it very hard to read about ppl who are being cared for in a hospital saying take your black hands off me! I don’t understand it and I never will. The imbecility of someone espousing those views beggars belief. We all came from Africa, we all share a common heritage. White ppl just lost the pigment in their skin through lack of sunshine.
Humans are humans whether African, Asian, Inuit, European etc etc.
I’m not trying to exscuse anything, but I don’t think enough is done to help ppl understand these things.
As I always say, I could be standing at the bus stop next to a black person and a white person and I could share more dna in common with the black person than the white person.
However, I do have one very significant bone of contention, Tony doesn’t tell us if he completed the jigsaw that he is pictured with??
Dear Tony what an inspiring story which helps me understand why you too are an inspiring champion of the strength and resilience of African and Caribbean communities here in Britain.
Thank you for sharing the story of your mother and aunty’s contribution to the NHS – their courage and professionalism was a constant challenge to the lncredlble ignorance of racism they encountered.
Brilliant &poignantly written ! U should submit it to the Gleaner for consideration of the Musgrave Pen Award.
Thanks Toney for your well written article. As someone who is also from the beautiful parish of St. Thomas, I would like to pay tribute to your late mother and her siblings. The history of the young women who went to GB and entered nursing was a testament to their ambitious aptitude. They served well and deserve to be credited. Regarding the cleanliness I am elated that you have lifted it up. May the ancestors continue to journey with you today and always.
Hi Tony, as usual, nothing less than high quality, informative treasure piece.
What a beautiful way to pay tribute to not only your mother and her siblings but also a fitting way of reminding the world and it archives about those forgotten and very important pioneers and historical facts that have contributed to the founding success of the NHS and Health Care System in the UK since its inception.
As a people who have been tested, betrayed, abused, (the list is so long) through institutionalised racism, discrimination and of course fear, how poignant that at this time recognition by those in power, call upon the support from those like your mother to step-up to the frontline once again to help combat yet another UK crisis, possibly to the detriment of their own health and even life.
Many of those unsung heroes who for many years were overlooked, belittled even airbrush from the successes of the NHS and the Care and Support system… are now seen as vital contributors to yet another struggle, another fight that it seems cannot be won without their help. A very popular biblical reference comes to mind, ‘the stone that the builder refuse’…
But there is also an element of Deja Vue here – so I think we could reflect and be wise to the situation!
Thanks for sharing Tony. I read this in 2020 and I read it again today in 2022 and have shared it with our younger generation – lest we forget. We must change the narrative.
Very impressed
This should be a one woman play enjoyable reading very imaginative dear Sir
It is with much gratitude that I read this article because I too have a background in nursing; the generation that followed Tony’s mother into the NHS, some 25 years later. We were in no doubt that we were standing on the shoulders of those great pioneering nurses who paved the way for us. So as I read Tony’s very powerful piece, it affirmed for me that we must continue to give voice to our history, and shine a light on pioneering Caribbean women like Tony’s mother.