Holt School student pays tribute to Forbury Gardens victim

Those are the words of 18-year-old Tamanna Steven, a former student of history teacher James Furlong, one of the three victims from the Forbury Gardens terror attack.

The Holt pupil had been taught by Mr Furlong since she started at the Wokingham school seven years ago.

He taught Tamanna and many of her peers valuable lessons in history, government and politics, but among his greatest contributions to his students will be the values of “courage, integrity and kindness” he demonstrated in the classroom.

READ MORE: Remembering the victims of the Forbury Gardens terror attack

Tamanna told the Chronicle: “He was chatty and on the fun side, he tried to make lessons very engaging for everyone, whether you liked history or didn't like history. 

“He was a very kind man. I think that's something that everyone has said, he would ask how people were, he would also constructively critique people if they needed it.

“But he was generally just a very positive friendly person, and I think he had quite a profound effect on a lot of people in their education.

Tamanna Steven

“He definitely inspired a lot of people, he brought a lot of people out of their shells, he encouraged people to be vocal about their own thoughts and opinions and not just to learn things but to really take on the lesson from it.”

One particular memory of Mr Furlong that sticks out in Tamanna’s mind is when, at a parents evening, he told her parents that the student would often disagree with things he said in class. 

READ MORE: Priti Patel writes exclusively for the Chronicle one year on from attack

She also remembers the assemblies he gave on vitally important issues such as the LGBT community, remembrance, and HIV and AIDS.

Looking back on the fateful day Mr Furlong was tragically murdered in the Forbury Gardens attack, Tamanna said she was “shocked” by the news.

The Holt School student added: “No one could really comprehend what happened. I was devastated, really.

James Furlong

“It’s something quite a lot of people [at the school] wouldn't have experienced before, that sense of loss and the fact it was so sudden and completely out of the blue. 

“Again, I think, even now it's difficult to comprehend, and it was an incredibly overwhelming feeling. 

READ MORE: How the tragic night in Forbury Gardens unfolded

“I think for a long time and even still in the school you still feel it, I don't think you'll ever completely recover from the shock of that.”

Tamanna added: “I was quite close to him. He was one of the teachers which I considered a friend as well as a teacher. 

“So, it had quite a profound impact on me and I felt that I needed to do something [to honour his legacy.”

Part of the school’s Head Girl team, Tamanna, her friends and teachers laid flowers, held a church service and organised an online assembly dedicated to Mr Furlong in the days after his passing.

The school’s coming together provided a “sense of solidarity and comfort” for The Holt’s students, who formed a greater “connection” in the fallout from the tragedy.

But Tamanna and her peers wanted to honour Mr Furlong in a permanent way and set about coming up with ideas to do just this. 

The Holt School

Following an incredible fundraising rally that went “viral” in the three hours after its launch, Tamanna sourced more than £12,000 for a mosaic from international award-winning artist Gary Drostle in honour of her teacher, the design of which was created in collaboration with The Holt students.

READ MORE: How will the victims be remembered?

The mosaic will honour Mr Furlong’s legacy and the “immense impact” he had on everyone who knew him. 

Speaking about the academic impact Mr Furlong had on her, Tamanna added: “I'm going to be doing, hopefully, a law degree at Oxford if I get the grades, but I think the main way that someone's legacy can live on, even if they're gone, is through other people.

“So those values that he had of courage, integrity, and the kindness he showed to others, his sense of humour and just being kind, generally, if you take those on and implement that in your life, their legacy doesn't die, it lives on.

“I think that's quite a powerful thing and it's something that we're trying to encourage at school, that you can take on someone's values and you can take on their characteristics and that really positive outlook on life and their traits. 

“And that's what lives on and that's what makes someone's legacy really special.”