11 March 2020
It was a pleasure to welcome Baroness Caroline Cox to Woldingham on Wednesday 11 March. She introduced herself to her Sixth Form audience as ‘a nurse and social scientist by intention, and a baroness by astonishment’. She said that she had decided to use this privilege by being a voice for the voiceless and so she founded the Humanitarian Aid Relief Trust (HART), of which she is also CEO.
Baroness Cox spoke passionately about HART’s work, often during times of conflict, in countries including Armenia, Sudan and South Sudan and Syria. She has visited those in need frequently herself over many years but described HART’s local partners as ‘the heroes’.
The students had many questions for Baroness Cox, including whether her Christian faith is tested by the atrocities she sees and whether she ever feels overwhelmed by situations. One motto she offered in answer was the seemingly simple, but very powerful ‘I cannot do everything but I must not do nothing.’
Baroness Cox’s visit came about thanks to Head Girl, Sarah, who explains: ‘In Year 9 I had the wonderful opportunity to win a HART Human Rights Prize. This led me to having tea with Baroness Cox at the House of Lords and doing work experience at her charity in the summer. Seeing her dedication to the cause of caring for the vulnerable, combining aid and advocacy to make people's lives better, I thought it would be a really valuable experience for Woldingham students to hear her speak.’
To find out more about HART, click here.
