We've news of an initiative bringing much cheer on the doorstep, from Birmingham Anna Chaplaincy network member Catriona Foster, based in Harbourne.
A cream tea to go
'Thank you for making the day special.'
'A delightful surprise.'
'You have brought so much happiness!'
'As a special treat for some of our older church members and other older people in the community,' writes Catriona, 'we delivered 100 "cream teas in a bag" on VE Day. Each bag contained two fruit scones, a portion of jam, a portion of clotted cream, a serviette and a postcard with VE Day pictures on one side, a message on the other sending our love and assurance that they are not forgotten, a mention of victory and peace from Jesus and a reminder to pop the cream in the fridge until they’re ready to eat it!'
Volunteers delivered these using cool bags and ice packs for the cream, and keeping a safe distance at each door.
'This simple idea brought huge blessing to all the recipients. It seems that the surprise element alone brought much happiness and the older people were delighted to have a face-to-face chat with the friendly person who had rung their bell.
They felt special because they had been remembered and we noted how many relished the opportunity to tell of their memories of VE Day. One lady immediately unfolded the Union Jack serviette and stuck it to her window as her decoration!
It was such a worthwhile thing to do and I’m sure with a bit of creativity, a similar thing could be done at other times,' said Catriona.
'When I woke in the morning I didn’t feel at all like celebrating…. until your cream tea arrived.'
'Apart from the items on TV, those of us who vividly remember VE day, and are now totally isolated, had no means of making it special. So thank you, thank you, thank you for giving us a special tea on a very special day.'
'Amazing how a modest thing like scones and clotted cream really lifted my spirits.'
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