More than 500 thank you cards were today presented to nurses for their work on the Covid-19 front line.

Schoolchildren, businesses and social services agencies worked during May – Nurses’ Month – to create many of the cards, which were handed over by the Salvation Army.

Lieutenant Kendacy Barnes, the community and family services officer at the Salvation Army, said: “Nurses have been doing a fantastic job, working hard on the front line and we thought, how can we show our appreciation for what they do?

“We thought people can’t get out but they can make a card at home, so that is where the idea came from.”

The cards were presented to staff at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

Captain Dwayne Barnes, the corps officer for the Salvation Army, said its members often visited patients in hospital to offer “spiritual and moral support”, but had to stop because of coronavirus restrictions.

He added: “Because of this, we were solely relying on the nurses to do what they do best.

“The thought was, if they give so much, why can’t we give something back to them?

“Looking at what they had to do throughout the pandemic, we wanted to show them that what they are doing is appreciated.”

Judy Richardson, the Chief of Nursing at the Bermuda Hospitals Board, said: “It is a beautiful gesture.

“All of our front line staff have been affected by this but the nurses have been in all areas, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and have probably been the most affected.

“This community recognition means a lot to everyone.”