General Chat

Hi Shirley I can understand why you are so concerned for the families you work with I have had some involvement with a family centre and Homestart and some of the cases that we have dealt with have been tragic. Add homelessness to the equation and it makes it even more difficult to cope with Do hope more people will have read this and decide to donate goods to a local charity, to me it is more rewarding than just writing out a cheque Dee xx

This morning i had a lovely lady call at the centre with a large box of toys for the children, my faith in human kindness has been restored. Shirley Ann.

Thank you to the two ladys that mailed me, you are so very very kind, and i am warmed by your kindness. I feel very strongly about the homeless i as i work with these people, i try to help them peice together their shattered lives, i am with the mother and her 2 little ones, who has been beaten black and blue by her violent husband and has had to flee her home with only the clothes they are wearing. Iam with the teenager who has been abused by three membes of her family for years, and only just managed to pluck up the courage to tell someone, i am with the father and his eight year old son, who's wife died of cancer 3 mnths earlier, and his wifes father sold the house they were living in and left this greiving pair homeless. the 75 yr old man who could no longer live with his wife as she and his daughter used to hit him, and not let him eat in the house, or sit in his lounge, he was only allowed in the kichen. I could go on and on, the list is endless. these are ordanary people who once had normal lives like you or i. So please forgive me if i get carried away with this subject. Shirley Ann.

shirley ann i think we are all guilty of this thinking about ourselves rather than others.goodwill to all men as they say.i will look in my yellow pages and do a shoebox for someone who is less fortunatexxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx((:

shirley - i knew and sure others did too that you were not asking people to give, just highlighting the idea. Going back to my meals on wheels bit , many of the clients had just the one christmas card - the one i sent them. very very sad that so many people are loney at christmas and have so very very little jess x

There are a few of us ladies that meet up every week and we started up an operation christmas time quite a long time ago and we had lots of people filling a christmas bag with the name of child and age on it then, we delivered the bags to different homes then, when we all retired from work we decided to do our own and it is the most rewarding thing to do if you could have seen the faces on these kids it was worth a fortune. Well done all of you that are doing it as well.

thats a good thought,

Thank you all for bothering to add to thread. I can fully understand people getting fed up with being asked for donations. I was not actually asking you to give anything that you wouldn't gladly give, my point was to let you know that on Christmas morning when we are all opening our presents, there are people at centres , our fellow human beings, that have nothing , not a personal wrapped up pressie just for them, and beleive me we are talking kiddies here as well. I for one have at least 20 or more new items still in new order in cupboards and drawers in my house that i will gladly wrap up and put under our tree at the centre, i also buy items , i make sure all my residents have a present to open on christmas morning. my residents are from all walks of life, all ages, whole familys, and are homeless for many reasons. its a heart breaking for them to be in this situation. For all of you that care thank you. Shirley Ann.

Neither did I Paul. Googled it and its only 10 minutes away from me, never even knew it was there. Jess, she said on the phone people need socks, underwear and toiletries the most. When they e-mail me I will put the full list on here. Sarah x

shirley were we used to live they used to open the YMCA over the christmas period. My FiL died in the November and I called them to see if they wanted any of the old blankets in his flat. They came round and had all his clothes/blankets/sheets etc. Made us feel better that they were going to be put to good use instead of just thrown out.

Quite often, our shelter puts out appeals for things that are not perhaps obvious. Food, quite often is not amongst their list of needs. Socks and unerpants are often in demand, as are towels and blankets. In a very small article in the local paper they appealed for unwanted Mugs...and recieved 100's . Jess x

do you know what, I don't even know where our local shelter is ?

nudged to keep this on the first page.

Thought I would let you all know, I have just spoken to my local centre and they were very helpful. I am now waiting for an e-mail of a list of suggested presents that will be most appreciated and useful. I am also going to bug friends and family aswell as colleagues to get involved. Sarah x

I have given to the local drop in centre for the last few years. They collect tinned foods, preserves, pickles, teabags, coffee etc. Each week when I go shopping I look out for the 'Buy one, get one free offers' and if it is a product I use I buy it and donate the free one. I will also take a few things along to the local family centre or possibly to Homestart Dee xx

First, I am off to fill a basket for Harvest, then will line a shoe box with old Xmas paper and put some items in it to open on Xmas Day by someone who doesn't have as much as me. The trouble is, there are so many charities asking us for donations, we become negative about giving, and see it as harassment - me for one. I give a monthly donation to Cancer research UK and occasional donations to charities helping children, but my purse is not a bottomless pit! Lily

Oh Jess, that gave me goose bumps. what a lovely story . Shirley Ann. Now off to work, but hope this thread is full of good ideas by the time i get back on puter.

jess, that brought a tear to me eye,, it's very sad, we are such a rich country, lynnxx

Thank you Sarah, thats a lovely idea. how many of us i wonder have unwanted unopened gifts laying in a drawer , those unwanted gifts could make someone very happy. also you can pick new looking cuddly toys up with tags still on them from charity shops, like that you are helping two charities at the same time. I always go into work at some point on xmas day, even though it is my day off, just to make sure no one is there alone. Shirley Ann.

2 years ago, i delivered meals on wheels for Social services on Christmas day. On the way to fetch the vehicle i happened across a homeless bloke still asleep in the door way, as it happened, of the local registry office- seemed very poignant in a sad kind of way. I shot off , and returned via the same route with a cup of tea for him. feeling a bit daft, i got out of the car and gave him the cup of tea (where else was he going to get on on christmas morning?) and just held it out to him. he said not a word, nor did I. Later I returned that way, (I had a left over christmas dinner,hot and ready to eat) but he'd gone. But he'd left the mug on the step with a message spelled out in used matches.THANK.. Cried my little eyes out all the way home. It was so little and yet .... Jess x