With the festive season rapidly approaching, the food bank is as busy as ever. The holidays can be especially hard on families who are struggling, and the global pandemic is making it harder still.
As always, we rely on your donations. Items we most regularly require are listed here. In addition to these, please consider donating seasonal items that may be a treat for those in need, such as the following:
We recently mentioned the significant increase in visitor numbers to the Foodbank and that the team is considering a re-introduction of a volunteers rota to help us through the coming autumn and winter.
Since Lockdown commenced, the Foodbank has been operated by a ‘volunteers bubble’ - consisting of SVP and Young Persons SVP members and also a fantastic ’temporary’ team of home delivery volunteers.
Thank you to those who have kindly stepped forward to be part of the new rota and it is still not too late to get in touch if you would like to be included! The Foodbank leaders meet next Saturday to discuss the idea of re-introducing a rota, potentially to start on Sept. 5, and we will be in touch with all those who expressed an interest once a safe strategy is agreed.
The presence of the Holy Spirit in the parish is so tangible. Your incredible response to the Easter appeal for help, which raised over £3,500, has given us a super-solid foundation from which we are able to continue to help the needy who come to us.
Before the pandemic, our typical monthly visitor numbers to the Foodbank were 120+. In May, though, our monthly figure was a sobering 391. Each and every one was helped, because you helped us. Please accept our heartfelt thanks for your donations of funds, supplies and, above all, prayers.
Like other aspects of our society, the SVP Team now needs to think of how we adjust ourselves to the new ’normal’. Our most active workstream at the moment is the Foodbank, and we have kept this open during the pandemic with an intentionally-small team acting as a Foodbank bubble. This strategy works well for short term issues but it removes team qualities such as resilience and sustainability, that are necessary for longer-term success.
A stranger was strolling past the Foodbank last Saturday when the queue and the banter of the clients attracted his attention. He turned around and came to get a closer look. A minute later and he was comfortably sitting on a chair, guitar removed from his back, and warming up his vocal chords. He treated us to a joyful half-hour of songs, finishing with How Great Thou Art!
The Foodbank session was very busy, the ’new normal’, and we never got to say thank you to this brother of ours. Hopefully he will come back. In the meantime, if you’d like to treat us to some music then why not just turn up! David (recall David and Goliath) cheered up Saul with music when Saul felt troubled, so why not you to add joy to our Saturdays at the Foodbank!! It’ll be appreciated!!