Our reason to be THANKFUL

In these uncertain times, we need to focus on the positives, and so many of you deserve a thumbs-up for helping each other through…

- MISHAAL KHAN

As lockdown continues and we see the impact of COVID-19 all around us, the figures make for grim reading. But, as well as the traumatic and difficult news, every day we’re also hearing stories of true kindness, generosity and good deeds.

Perhaps the biggest of these stories is that of WWII veteran Captain Tom Moore (left), who hoped to raise £1,000 for NHS charities by doing 100 lengths of his garden before his 100th birthday on 30 April. At the time of going to press, donations reached more than £27 million, amid calls for the hero to be knighted.

We’re indebted to frontline NHS workers like Luis Pitarma – a Portuguese nurse singled out for thanks by PM Boris Johnson, along with Jenny McGee, a nurse from New Zealand – for saving his life.

Beyond these incredible people, we are surrounded by small reasons to be thankful every single day, and by thoughtful actions that are helping us all through these times.

HUSBAND ON THE FRONTLINE

Laura Lightbody, 38, Telford

My husband, Ty, is a doctor working on a COVID-19 ward at one of the worst-hit hospitals in the country. While he’s saving lives, I’m homeschooling our five children, aged 10 months to seven. There’s little let-up for either of us, and I’m proud of all he’s doing. We were touched when our best friends, San and Bobby (below), left Ty’s favourite curry and daal on our doorstep in appreciation of Ty’s part in the fight against the virus.

WOMAN’S BEST FRIEND

Becka Heaps, 49, Royston