6 positive coronavirus news stories to help you smile this Monday

The news is bursting with negativity right now which is why we are taking a look at six coronavirus news stories that will make you smile

Even though we were blessed with beautiful weather yesterday, the general feeling in the country is still one of doom and gloom. Yesterday was a different type of Mother’s Day, with many not able to physically see their mothers because of the virus.

However, that doesn’t mean the weekend didn’t have its good points.

Here at IMAGE, we believe in spreading positivity which is why we are taking a look at some of the feel-good stories that made people smile over the weekend.

Rihanna pledges $5 million in aid to Barbados

The Pon De Replay singer has allegedly offered $5 million to help underdeveloped countries deal with the virus. $700,000 of this will be used to buy ventilators for her home country of Barbados. The rest of the money will be put towards food banks and providing testing in nations such as Haiti. According to TMZ, the singer will be making the donation through her Clara Lionel Foundation.

Mother’s Day with a difference

For many, yesterday may have been filled with sadness. On a day usually spent spoiling our mothers, it was a Mother’s Day where many couldn’t see or hug their own because of the virus. However, it didn’t stop the love and adoration with video messages, greetings through windows with presents left at the door and even a cup of tea shared two metres apart.

World Health Organisation announces clinical trial across eight countries

Argentina, Bahrain, Canada, France, Iran, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Thailand and Switzerland are to take part in the ‘Solidarity trial’ by the World Health Organisation. The trial will test four different drugs or combinations and will then compare their effectiveness to what is called standard of care.

8,000 volunteers sign up to #selfisolationhelp

What began as a hashtag on Twitter has now become a countrywide showing of solidarity with 8,000 volunteers signed up to help those in need during the crisis. Volunteers make themselves known through www.localsupport.ie to carry out tasks such as grocery shopping for those unable to leave their homes due to self-isolation.

Helen O’ Rahilly, former BBC One executive and Director of RTÉ, was one of the key people behind the initiative and told the Irish Examiner: “This is not some self-referential Twitter nonsense, this is a genuine effort to put in another layer of support on top of all the effort that’s already going on.”

Dublin residents organise bingo with a difference

Residents in a set of flats in Ringsend organised a unique game of bingo over the weekend which saw an outpouring of positivity and laughter on social media. A loudspeaker was set up on the roof for the bingo caller, who then announced the numbers for those in the area.

Absolute joy.

Up the flats, playing the Bingo. ? #COVID19ireland ?? pic.twitter.com/MZ62FybsMk

— Graham Merrigan (@Merriganmania) March 20, 2020

Birthday joy for Jack

Jack Beattie received an outpouring of birthday love over the weekend following an appeal from his mother Ruth. The 9-year-old who suffers from a rare disease called Osteogenesis Imperfacta had to cancel his birthday because of the coronavirus. This is the third year in a row such an occurrence has happened with the little boy having had surgery around his birth date for the past two years. His mother Ruth was heartbroken at having to tell Jack the news and so appealed for people on Facebook to post him birthday cards.

To date, Jack has received over 1,000 cards with some coming from countries such as France and Switzerland.