A letter of thanks

Dear Miss Hall’s: Thank you for what you have done.

Today, I’m here, writing this letter to express my sincere thanks to my school. In this difficult situation, the school has always done what it can to help me, to help all the students who are not able to go home due to the Coronavirus.

At first, we all thought that it was only a temporary problem. At that time, the Coronavirus in my hometown (and some other places) was very serious, so lots of students were not able to go back home.

When there was about half a month before spring break, the school said that international students who had no place to go during spring break could stay in the school and the school would provide them with activities just like what they have done during all the long weekends. But things quickly took a turn for the worse. While the Coronavirus in China got better, the Coronavirus here got worse.

The school first canceled all the large events they were planning to hold, then as time passed by, more and more people were caught by Covid-19 in Massachusetts, even in Pittsfield. At that time the school announced that they would not hold any off-campus events anymore, to ensure our safety.

Halfway through spring break, things went against all expectations, and it seemed like the school might not reopen for the entire semester. Not surprisingly, a few days later, the school announced the heartbreaking news that classes would be taught online for the rest of the school year. But the school promised all the students who were still on campus that they would ensure our safety and allow us to stay on campus until we found someplace to go. This promise made me breathe a sigh of relief, because I had no place to go other than staying on campus and I was really worried that the school would force us to leave since lots of high schools and universities had already closed.

But thankfully, my school didn’t do that. More than that, the school didn't take us for granted just because the number of students in the school was small. On the contrary, the school provided enough healthy food for us every day. Everyone I met at the school I send my sincere greetings to and care about, because if I was sad because I couldn't go home, they asked what they could help me with. Ms. B was planning everything for us, and the health center was in the dining hall every day during lunchtime, waiting for us to take our temperature to make sure that we were healthy. 

I was planning to take the Test of English as a Foreign Language, TOEFL, (hopefully my last one) on May 2nd if Covid-19 didn't come. But even though I was not able to go and take my TOEFL test, my advisor Tanya, Ms. Krzanik, Ms. Virden, and I discussed this and decided to take the special home edition test, right on campus.

Then, Ms. Virden and Mr. Pocock were trying their best to meet all the requirements ETS has for taking the test. Finally, with all of their help, I was able to finish my test. This experience still seems unbelievable to me.

We are now in such a historical moment, things are just hard. But thankfully, with all of those kind people in Miss Hall's and their help, I can overcome those difficulties and stay healthy. And I believe, with all of the efforts from kind people all around the world, Spring will come someday.

Ivy ’22