3.1 The Kindness Campaign
It is at such challenging times when people are at their most vulnerable, that communities come together in support of each other. This is how the hundreds of Group members, their families and friends responded as COVID-19 showed no signs of being defeated in late 2020. From early October 2020 Zoom meetings were scheduled with committee members and other interested Group members to discuss the Christmas 2020 celebrations within the context of the pandemic. Over a two month period, and with excellent leadership from its Committee, the Group galvanised a community into action that saw them donating hundreds of gifts, food parcels and prizes for a series of raffles, lotteries and competitions for the whole community.
A programme of events was organised for the community’s children and young people, and for the Group’s volunteers.
Underpinning this impressive collective response was a concerted effort to provide essential advice and support to the many vulnerable people of the town and surrounding area most in need. A suite of training programmes were put in place for the Group’s volunteer workforce, who in turn went into the community providing training in IT skills, the English language, liaising with local doctor’s surgeries and Citizen Advice Bureau.
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