Garry Brooks

Age Concern Local Christmas Charity Collection

Fundraising for Age Concern Merstham, Redhill and Reigate (MRR)
£514
raised of £1,000 target
Lockdown Lectures Xmas Charity Collection, 15 November 2020
We support older people in the local area to prevent loneliness and social isolation

Story

Would you like to help a local charity providing much-needed services for older people? If so, read on! 

Many of you know me as one of the  people behind the highly-successful Zoom “Lockdown Lectures”, together with  Simon (from the Leatherhead & District Local History Society) & Gwen (from the Dorking Local History Group). 

The talks were funded mainly through attendee donations, but we now have raised enough money to continue with them until mid-2021. So rather than asking you for a donation to fund more online history talks,  we’d like to ask you to make a donation to a very important charity instead, i.e. Age Concern Merstham, Redhill and Reigate (ACMRR), instead. 

ACMRR has provided vital services to the local community since 1957. It aims to lift older people from loneliness and social isolation, promote independence and offer advocacy and advice.

It provides a day centre for older people three days per week, referred to as ‘The Club’ by its clients. It offers a wide variety of activities, a traditional hot meal every day it is open, and takeaway food for other days.  ACMRR has  an accessible minibus to transport clients  to and from the centre and provide weekly shopping trips and outings. Apart from dinners and the wide range of activities available at the centre,  clients  come to stay connected with their friends and community.

ACMRR also run a “Men’s Shed” in the garden of the centre for older men who prefer not to attend a traditional day centre, and a Befriending Service for socially isolated older people.

During the Covid-19 crisis, the Day Centre has either been closed  or severely restricted in numbers, but ACMRR have been doing regular outreach work through food deliveries, phone calls, newsletters and more to address the difficulties many elderly people are suffering from during the crisis.

All of this, of course, costs money and ACMRR's income has been seriously reduced by the Covid-19 crisis. Can you help? If everyone who has attended one of the Lockdown Lectures donates £5, we will meet our £1500 target easily 

Despite  "Age Concern" being part of their name, ACMRR is not part of a national organisation and is almost entirely dependent on their own fund-raising efforts.

You can find out more about ACMRR at  https://www.ageconcernmrr.org.uk/ 

and more on the "Lockdown Lectures" at https://www.meetup.com/Surrey-History-Meetup

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About the charity

Age Concern MRR provides a day centre for older people three days per week, referred to as ‘The Club’ by the clients and is a vital resource for them. There is a traditional hot meal available every day and a takeaway option for the days we are closed. They can access a podiatrist and hairdresser; we can support our clients with their business needs and can advocate on their behalf. We have an accessible minibus to transport them to and from the centre and provide weekly shopping trips and outings. There is a Men’s Shed in the garden of the centre for older men who prefer not to attend a traditional day centre and a Befriending Service for socially isolated older people. Apart from the wide range of activities available, the clients mainly come to stay connected with their friends and community. We support older people living in our local area, helping them to remain living in their own homes for as long as is practical and they so wish. Our client’s range in age and abilities, our youngest is 68 and the oldest is 103. We offer a range of services with the primary aim of reducing loneliness and social isolation and keeping people connected with their friends and community. Many of our clients have mobility problems and rely on walking aids or wheelchairs to get around, which limits their ability to be independent at home and in the community, many would be forced into premature admission to a care home without the support we can offer.

Donation summary

Total raised
£514.00
+ £95.50 Gift Aid
Online donations
£514.00
Offline donations
£0.00

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