King Charles has expressed his gratitude towards Filipinos, especially those serving in the NHS, at an event in Waltham Forest, London.

Speaking to Filipino community leader and entrepreneur Averil Pooten Watan, the King recalled the excellent care he recently received from a Filipino nurse.

“As the daughter of a retired NHS nurse, and as I now support social care, this acknowledgement meant a lot,” Ms Watan wrote on Facebook.

Their Majesties the King and Queen visited Waltham Forest Town Hall on Friday, 20th December. They attended events to celebrate its community spirit in the wake of racist riots that took place in August.

Representing the Filipino community in the area, Ms Watan supported the borough to be accredited as a Borough of Sanctuary. She is the chair of Igorot-UK Charity, an organisation formed by indigenous Filipinos originally from the Cordillera region in the northern Philippines. Many of its members live in the borough.

“His parting words, asking me to extend his ‘best wishes and thanks to the Filipino community,’ were a profound reminder of the impact and value of our contributions, both big and small,” Ms Watan wrote.

This article was originally published on Tinig UK: https://bit.ly/king_charles_wendy_watan