“Individually we are one drop, together we are an ocean!” Ryunosuke Satoro (Japanese poet)
What a strange Easter weekend we’ve all had. With everything that’s happening in the world today, it would be all too easy to focus on the constant stream of tragic stories, negativity and division. We could spend each day reporting our neighbours to the police for lockdown violations, or we could look for ways to make this situation better for everyone.
Like many other members of our community, Nick Cockayne from Sandal has done just that. When he discovered via his neighbour that Wilkos had thousands of Easter eggs in need of good homes, he volunteered to collect them and deliver these chocolate goodies to some of Wakefield’s most vulnerable people. First up, he put Wilkos in touch with Adam Smith from the Real Junkfood Project, which has its Kindness Sharehouse in Wakefield. Then he arranged to deliver some of the spare Easter eggs to St Catherine’s foodbank and the Urban House refugee centre, both in Wakefield.
St Catherine’s foodbank on Doncaster Road, Wakefield is a big operation. It runs 5 days a week, producing 400 parcels for individuals and families who are in food poverty. Lisa Grant, manager at St Catherine’s said, “thank you so much for considering us for this donation. We are currently handing out/delivering around 80 food parcels a day. Approximately half of those are for families with children.” She and two of her volunteers helped upload the eggs from the van when Nick pitched up – what a sight for sore eyes!
Nick then took the remaining 60 eggs to Urban House on Love Lane at Wakefield. The chocolate was given out to the children of refugees and asylum seekers who are housed at this initial accommodation centre. The charity Wakefield City of Sanctuary supports refugees and asylum seekers at the centre by providing clothing, money and food (though not usually Easter eggs!). Kath Moffatt from Urban House said, “The kids couldn’t believe the eggs were for them, and were so pleased”.
Urban House and St Catherine’s are always in need of donations and volunteers. Please visit their websites for more details.
