Seasons Greetings and Thank You

I’d like to wish seasons greetings and a happy new year to all New Horizon friends; volunteers, supporters, donors and residents.

Thank you for all the help, extraordinary kindness, and support that we have received during an exceptionally difficult year.

To everyone; to those who donated, and wrote emails, and made phone calls and built webpages, and moderated Zoom meetings. To those who did administration and distributed vouchers and back-to-school packs. To those who provided information and support when we really did not know what to do. To donors for their extraordinary generosity, a gofundme appeal with a target of €2000 ended up receiving €7500!

To the staff of the DP sites who did a difficult and dangerous job with kindness and courage.
To the community support workers who were always there when we needed them. To the multitude of new friends who appeared just when they were needed.

Above all to the DP residents who came through a very, very difficult time in a strange land with grace and dignity.

I have no words so I’ll go to Seamus Heaney’s great poem “From the Republic of Conscience”

I came back from that frugal republic
with my two arms the one length, the customs woman
having insisted my allowance was myself.

The old man rose and gazed into my face
and said that was official recognition
that I was now a dual citizen.

He therefore desired me when I got home
to consider myself a representative
and to speak on their behalf in my own tongue.

Their embassies, he said, were everywhere
but operated independently
and no ambassador would ever be relieved.

“From the Republic of Conscience,” from Opened Ground: Selected Poems 1966-1996 by Seamus Heaney. Copyright © 1998 by Seamus Heaney.

It’s been a privilege to work with you all.
Wishing you and all your family, health, happiness and peace.