Dear Parents and Students,
We hope you and your wider networks of family and friends are all keeping safe and well and maintaining the necessary social and physical distancing during this crucial time.
It has come to our attention that senior students are being invited out – to hangouts in houses, with groups going for walks etc. which is completely against the guidelines that the HSE is at pains to implement in order to protect society and our most vulnerable in society from this virus and to flatten the curve so that we don’t experience the worst effects that Italy is presently experiencing.
Young people can fight this virus but if they do not obey the rules of social and physical distancing and continue to meet in groups they will bring the virus back into their homes and endanger the lives of their vulnerable family members who may be older or may have underlying health conditions.
We all have someone in our family or wider social circle who is at risk – who has diabetes, asthma, a heart or respiratory condition or a compromised immune system and we have to be mindful of them at all times in the personal choices we make.
This is a worrying time for all of us but if we obey the guidelines as set down by the HSE we can control the spread of this virus for which there is as yet no vaccine.
Young people who are playing such an important role in the fight against climate change can also take a leading role in the fight against Covid-19. We are depending on you now more than ever before. The longer we disregard the importance of social and physical distancing the longer this goes on.
We appeal to parents and students to heed the guidelines and we will all come through this crisis with the best outcomes possible.
Young people are speaking out in response to this issue and some of the responses are below for your information.
Please see below an article where Jennifer Barry Young Offenders star apologises for her lack of responsibility in attending a house party recently:
And this important media campaign below set up to encourage young people to abide by social and physical distancing:
https://twitter.com/RTE2fm/status/1239846394648760320?s=08
“Jennifer Barry says that she is fearful of contracting coronavirus after she went out in Cork City recently.
The actress, who plays Siobhan on the hit show The Young Offenders, has spoken of her concerns about contracting Covid-19 after she ignored her parents’ warnings about going out with friends recently.
The 19-year-old said she regretted her decision to head out when she learned of how dangerous the virus could be to her and her family.
Speaking with Ryan Tubridy on his RTE Radio One show today, Jennifer said: ‘So there was actually a house party on in Cork City. Now, because I’m not in college, I don’t get that many opportunities to go out with my friends, and hearing that they were finished in college and stuff, it was a huge celebration for me because it meant that they’d be around more.
‘My parents warned me before I went out.’
‘They said, “You’re making a mistake here and it’s not something you should be doing during these kinds of times with the coronavirus”,’ she added.
‘I just said, “Look, no one’s going to have it up there. We’re all young. We’re not going to give it to each other or anything, that’s not going to happen”.
‘And I stupidly ignored their advice.’
Jennifer admitted that she hadn’t been focussed on the news as of late so she didn’t understand quite how serious the situation with Covid-19 is.
The TV star says she had been avoiding it as there hadn’t been many cases in Ireland and that she didn’t ‘want it to seem real’.
She now reveals she is ‘furious’ at herself for taking the risk and putting her family in danger.
Revealing that her mother is currently on medication for her heart and her sister suffers from asthma, she admitted that she is now ‘living in fear’ because of ‘something I stupidly did’.
Calling her actions selfish, Jennifer encouraged others to really think about the precautions that have been put in place and to take them seriously.”
You can listen to the podcast of Jennifer with Ryan Tubridy on the link below:
Thinking of you all on this beautiful spring day as we all navigate these unpredictable waters together. We pray for the health and safety of each member of our school community, of all those we hold near and dear and of our greater global community.
