Book celebrating Mary Seacole launched

A book describing the 12 year campaign to bring the stunning Mary Seacole statue to the grounds of St Thomas’ Hospital was launched at the Florence Nightingale Museum at St Thomas’ on Wednesday 7 December.

A Statue for Mary: The Seacole Legacy acknowledges the tremendous efforts of the Mary Seacole Memorial Statue Appeal (MSMSA) which received donations from thousands of individual supporters and organisations to enable the memorial to be unveiled on 30 June this year.

The book includes contributions from former MP Lord Clive Soley of Hammersmith (MSMSA Chairman, the statue’s sculptor Martin Jennings and Baroness Valerie Amos, chair of the MSMSA sculptor appointment panel.

Baroness Amos writes in the book’s foreword: “It has been a long haul but the commitment and dedication of all those involved has paid off. There is a statue of Mary Seacole in the grounds of St Thomas’ Hospital, a tribute to her life and work and her status as an important role model today.

“The organisations and individuals whose donations and hard work have kept the vision alive can now take ownership of the statue and continue Mary’s legacy into the future.”

Guy’s and St Thomas’ Chairman Sir Hugh Taylor, who also contributed to the book, writes: “All of us who work in the NHS acknowledge the contribution that generations of healthcare workers from black and minority ethnic backgrounds have made to the NHS over the years.

“For them Mary Seacole is a pioneer, a role model for the courage and determination they have needed to follow their calling to serve their fellow human beings, often in challenging and sometimes hostile circumstances.

“The statue stands for them, as well as for her. For us here at Guy’s and St Thomas’ it speaks in a special way to the diversity of our local population, our patients and our staff – of which we are so proud.”

The book, priced £20, is available to buy at the Florence Nightingale Museum at St Thomas’ Hospital and the Black Cultural Archives in Brixton and from online retail outlets.