What We Did Through the Pandemic

I’m so proud of our little team!

At the pandemic's start, I asked everyone how they felt about continuing to work given the risks involved. There was no question about the retail side of the charity remaining open as all non-essential shops were forced to close. However, the charity could continue to run. Staff and volunteers voted to carry on working. They wanted to help, in some small way, anyone who needed it.

Firstly, we contacted our membership to see if members would like us to keep in touch by telephone. Did they need help with their shopping? Meds collection? Could we deliver Talking Books (normal services had been disrupted)? Did they require transport/guiding for medical appointments? Could we help with small, essential jobs at home?

The Steve Morgan Foundation has supported us financially throughout the pandemic. This lifted the immediate financial worry and has been an enormous help.

As support groups could still meet, we began to run ‘Tea for Two’. People who were struggling with loneliness were able to meet up in small, socially isolated groups! We enlisted the help of ‘Jack the Hat’, a well-known, local entertainer. He provided entertainment from behind a Perspex wall.

To begin with, Tea for Two was quite a sombre affair. There was so much sad news in the world and still, the very real risk of infection, it was difficult for strangers to meet and enjoy an afternoon together, but, as the old saying goes, strangers are friends who haven’t yet met and I’m glad to report that the only strangers at Tea for Two are those who haven’t been before.

When the second wave of the pandemic hit, it hit locally. The vaccine had not yet been rolled out. We felt that the risk to people had become too great and we put Tea for Two on hold for the time being.

As the public couldn’t come to us, we went out to the public. The bravery of our little team was once more apparent as they willingly sang along with ‘Jack the Hat’, entertaining people in their gardens, outside flats, and in the street. We aren’t entertainers and there was some embarrassment and a lot of laughter. After putting themselves on the line by trying to entertain, the team delivered specially prepared boxes of afternoon tea to lucky recipients.

We have continued to run the telephone befriending and other services throughout the pandemic. The shopping service came to end at the beginning of May 2021.

I would like to mention Debbie Duncan, Nigel Owen, Jill Whitmore, Stephen Murray, and George Hughes here. They did their bit and put themselves at risk when the risks were high. To me, their manager, they are heroes.

Sue Hearfield