E X E C U T I V E
D I R E C T O R ’ S
M E S S A G E
J o h n F. K y n e s - H i l l s b o r o u g h C o u n t y B a r A s s o c i a t i o n
amid CoVid-19 Pandemic, signs of hope:
health Care, frontline Community Workers
are america’s newest heroes
I
as always is the case, members of the legal community will
play a critical role in helping our nation regain its bearings.
n between the disturbing daily TV
news briefings about the COVID-19
pandemic, comes reports about
America’s newest heroes.
All the health care workers putting their
lives at risk every day to treat infected patients
and manage the crisis.
And all the first responders and the other
frontline community workers, such as grocery
store clerks, who help the rest of us all carry
on as best we can.
Their everyday acts of personal sacrifice
and compassion are truly inspiring.
We are all in this together, and the road to
recovery will certainly be a long one.
And, as always is the case, members of the legal
community will play a critical role in helping our nation
regain its bearings.
For instance, the Florida Bar YLD, in conjunction
with the ABA Young Lawyers Section and FEMA, has
re-opened its Disaster Relief Hotline.
Working remotely, volunteer attorneys assist citizens
negatively impacted by COVID-19 on a pro bono basis
by returning calls placed to the YLD’s 1-800 hotline.
You can get more information about this great
opportunity to help your fellow Floridians in their time
of need on the Florida Bar or HCBA websites.
In March, a Franciscan brother from Dublin, Ireland,
named Richard Hendrick posted on Facebook a poem he
had written to give respite to all those people who were
in “lockdown” amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Hendrick said he was inspired to write the poem by
news coverage of the pandemic outbreak. He was invited
to read his poem on BBC Radio London, and it was
featured on a broadcast by CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
Seen as a strong message of hope in the face of dire
circumstances, Hendrick’s Facebook post has been
shared tens of thousands of times. The full text follows
on the next page:
Continued on page 13
Are you looking for a new job or
advertising an opening at your firm?
Check out our Career Center at hillsbar.com.
12
M AY - J U N E 2 0 2 0
|
HCBA LAWYER