Queen speaks to Commonwealth volunteers

Britain's Queen Elizabeth II has spoken to Commonwealth volunteers via a video call to thank them and offer them praise for their achievements.

The Queen awards one volunteer from across the Commonwealth each week with a Commonwealth Points of Light award, in recognition of the difference they have made while volunteering in their local community.

During the call, the Queen said; "I'm delighted to have heard your stories and I think it's wonderful work that you're all doing, and volunteering so much. Thank you very much."

The three award winners on the call were from Trinidad and Tobago, Mozambique and Cyprus, all telling the monarch about how their initiatives have improved their local communities and beyond.

During the Queen's first ever virtual musical performance, 45 children performed an original piece of music in celebration of The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh's recent 73rd Wedding Anniversary.

The Sistema Cyprus Symphony Orchestra performed a never before heard piece – Modus Cyprus – due to be premiered to the public next week.

Nikoletta Polydorou, a music teacher from Cyprus who received her award in August 2020, founded 'Sistema Cyprus' in 2018.

The initiative transforms the lives of children and young people from challenged communities by providing free music education and instruments, and runs its own children's orchestra and choir.

The initiative also collaborates with three Cypriot Universities to provide academic scholarship opportunities, and now has their first student studying music at University.

Elizabeth also spoke to Len Peters from Trinidad and Tobago, who received the first ever Commonwealth Points of Light award in February 2018 in recognition of his community driven conservation organisation – the Grande Riviere Nature Tour Guide Association.

Over 30 years, Len's educational work in local communities and regular patrols of local beaches has transformed entire communities, with Trinidad and Tobago now home to one of the densest leatherback sea turtle nesting sites in the world.

Len's work also appeared on BBC's 'Blue Planet 2' with Sir David Attenborough.

The Queen also spoke to Ruy Santos from Mozambique who received the Commonwealth Points of Light award in July this year.

Santos founded Makobo in 2009, a collaborative working space to promote nutrition, education and youth employment, of which Her Majesty had her first virtual tour.

The space includes a soup kitchen, which during the pandemic fed 6,000 people daily, including lunchboxes to support local school children.

In response to COVID-19, the organisation also began working with 15 local dressmakers, producing over 6,000 masks for underprivileged communities, hospitals and charity workers.

During the call, Santos presented the Queen with one of Makobo's handmade masks "from Mozambique with love".