We’ve had some wonderful support from the community around us this month, and it’s made such a difference to our clients and our staff.
Here’s some of the good news which has been putting big smiles on Two Saints faces this month.
Two young supporters have brought smiles to Two Saints faces by creating hand-decorated gift bags for our clients.
After watching a video about a homeless person, five-year-old Everly decided that she wanted to help people who are rough sleeping on the Isle of Wight.
After her auntie proposed the idea of creating goodie bags, Everly teamed up with her sister Sofia, aged seven, to do something amazing for their community.
The pair raised money at their school on the Isle of Wight by hosting a non-uniform day and collecting donations of food and clothing. Everly and Sofia’s mum also shared their initiative on Facebook, and the family was overwhelmed by all the donations that were given.
The girls then hand-decorated 21 bags with unique designs and heart-warming messages for the receivers, filling each with useful items including jackets, scarves, hats, gloves, socks, snack, and water.
Laura, our contracts and performance manager on the Isle of Wight, said: “I would like to say a huge thank you to Everly for having the idea to do something so fantastic, and to both girls for all of their hard work and time in putting these bags together.
“It was so lovely to see how they had decorated them!
“I would also like to thank their parents for supporting them to do this, and to the school and other parents who kindly donated money, clothing and food.
“Rough sleeping is a sad reality, and one that we work hard to try to change.”
Everly and Sofia came to our workshop in Sandown to deliver the bags, and to tell us all about what they had been doing to make this wonderful gesture happen.
Laura added: “Having the support of our local community plays an important part, and I hope that Everly and Sofia feel very proud of what they have done, and how their kindness will help those who need it most.”
Everly and Sofia’s proud parents, Dan and Lauren, said: “We couldn’t be prouder of Everly’s thoughtfulness and her desire to make a difference at such a young age.
“Despite her young age, Everly has a deep understanding that not everyone has a place to call home, a warm bed to sleep in, or access to basic necessities such as food, water, and warmth.
“Her kindness and the positive impact she’s had on the community are truly inspiring, and we must also recognise the unwavering support from her sister, Sofia.”
We are so proud of our client Lucy, who took to the conference podium yesterday to talk about her experiences rough sleeping.
Lucy took part in Homeless Link’s Rough Sleeping: From Crisis to Prevention conference in London, accompanied by Two Saints manager David.
The conference welcomed more than 300 people working in homelessness, who came together to discuss rough sleeping prevention and support for rough sleepers.
Lucy took part in a Q&A, and David also took to the podium to do a presentation on The Ferryman and what the team there has achieved.
David said: “Lucy was fantastic and did herself and Two Saints proud.
“After our presentation she spent the day joining breakout sessions, discussing further issues and learning around homelessness.
“Lucy said she had a great day; everyone was really nice to her and really seemed interested in what she had to say.
“She just wanted to try and do something that would help other people.
“Another agency fed back that it was inspirational.”