Reaching out

Charities in Yorkshire have had to galvanise their efforts and energies to support the most vulnerable in their communities in the midst of lockdown. Jan Garrill, chief executive of Two Ridings Community Foundation, records a remarkable month

- Jan Garrill

March 11

I like March: the first day of spring is usually on or around my birthday, clocks go forward, spring bulbs appear and there is a general sense of everyone re-emerging from their winter hibernation.

Our March started normally with an International Women’s Day Lunch on March 11 at the Archbishops of York’s home, Bishopthorpe Palace. We raised £1,700 for Two Ridings Community Foundation’s Women and Girls Fund. We didn’t do any handshakes or kisses but other than that it felt like business as usual.

March 16

One of our regular Seeing is Believing visits to donors and supporters to visit local projects to see our grants in action. All four of the groups provide vital support to people in need at the best of times and little did we appreciate then how it was going to change, almost literally overnight.

I heard back from one of them, Supporting Older People in Harrogate, a few days later to let me know that instead of their regular luncheon clubs and trips out for older people they had transformed themselves into a telephone befriending service, in large part due to some funding we had given them in 2019 to pilot such a scheme. They have more than 70 new volunteers working with the Harrogate Round Table and have matched them with the nearly 300 existing and new clients who need support. While they respond magnificently to the challenges, at the same time they are losing income from fundraising - but are unable to furlough paid staff because demand is going through the roof.

March 18