Preventing Loneliness at Christmas with Worthing Cares
At the end of what has been a difficult and lonely year for many people, some are yet to face the loneliest time of all. With a year of isolation and distancing behind us and an equally uneventful Christmas ahead, ensuring those in need feel supported is more important than ever. To tackle the issue of loneliness during the 2020 holidays, the passionate and resourceful team at Guild Care have set up a fundraising campaign to brighten people’s Christmases, Worthing Cares.
As our chosen charity of the year, we are passionate about helping Guild Care bring cheer to the Christmases of as many local people as possible, which is why we have donated £3000 to the campaign. This will enable 60 hampers to be delivered by their incredible team of volunteers, along with some much-needed socially distanced doorstep chats.
Amanda Tucker, Guild Care’s Director of Fundraising, said: “We couldn’t be more grateful to ETI for their generous donation, and for their continued support of Guild Care. The money they’ve given to our Worthing Cares campaign will fund the hampers we send to our service users spending Christmas Day alone and will make a real difference. It’s heart-warming to see such support from the Worthing community, particularly in the difficult times that we find ourselves in.”
The hampers will be gifted to those who use Guild Care’s Help Stay at Home service or attended their Friendship Club for over 70s before it closed due to Covid-19 restrictions.
Julie Moon, who attended the Friendship Club and will be receiving a hamper, said: “Without Guild Care, Christmas Day for me this year would be just like any other day, nothing really to look forward to and no one to speak to – just the television for company.
“I know it’s silly but now I know that on Christmas day this year Guild Care has arranged for someone to visit me to drop off a little gift – well it’s just given me hope. It’s a beacon of light in what has been a really dark time.”
Closing their doors to Covid-19 in March this year has had a devastating impact on Julie’s mobility, mental health and diabetes, but the hamper will mean so much during her first Christmas alone. A donation of £40 will provide a complete hamper and some social interaction to someone like Julie.
Jason Webb, ETI Operations Director commented: ‘Christmas is a time of giving and thinking of others and the opportunity to help a charity that provides such outstanding care and support to its clients was met with much enthusiasm by staff at ETI. It also enables us to help raise awareness and provides an opportunity to give something back to our community. We look forward to supporting the campaign and continuing our collaboration with Guild Care into the New Year”.
Click here to donate to Worthing Cares.