BILL Gates has stunned students and teachers by visiting a New Cross school.
When Keely Wilson, an English teacher at Deptford Green school on Amersham Vale, applied to charity Speakers for Schools for an inspirational speaker, she never imagined they would get the Microsoft mogul.
But on January 25 the billionaire dropped by on his way to a world leaders’ conference in Switzerland and spent two hours addressing students.
Ms Wilson said: “I was stunned. As far as inspirational speakers go, it doesn’t get much better than Bill Gates.
“The students knew it was going to be someone from the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation, but they didn’t know it would be Bill Gates.
“They kept saying ‘imagine if'.”
Fifteen-year-old students Ilir Gashi, Rahela Begum,Tristan Gadd and Paige Hysnu with English teacher Keely Wilson
Mr Gates delivered a speech to a hall of packed teenagers, telling them about his first big break in computing which involved fixing his school’s timetable.
He outlined his career mentioning dropping out of university, starting Microsoft, and then leaving the company to start the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation.
The foundation works towards bringing innovations in health including providing vaccinations for diseases such as polio to developing countries.
When it found out that Deptford Green was linked to a school in Uganda, it seemed the ideal place to give a speech.
He told the assembled teenagers: “If I hadn't given my money away (to the foundation), I would now have more money than anyone else on the planet.”
Paige Husnu, aged 15, told News Shopper: “I didn’t think he would come. We thought that he might, but we didn’t find out until this morning (January 25).
“I am just happy that he actually came to our school."
Peter Campling
Headmaster Peter Campling said: “It couldn’t have been a more inspirational occasion for the children.
“To see somebody as successful but also as positive and determined to make a difference, it sends a wonderful message.
“It was just a surreal experience that he came to our back yard.”
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