Following Kevin Steele’s appeal for support for NHS staff, Kevin has written:
Hi there,
I dropped off the food and toiletries at the Emergency Department at Bournemouth Hospital this evening (with a mask and surgical gloves, and keeping my 2m distancing!). As also mentioned, I think it is important that people who are supporting a project, see exactly where the money or items have gone. I therefore enclose a photo of the items laid out in the ED seminar room. You might want to a) send this out to U3A members and/or b) put it on the website.
I am getting money and supplies all the time (at least 10 today, probably as a result of your email, so thank you), and have enough to continue this for at least 2 or 3 more weeks, probably a lot longer.
Regards
Kevin
Ps I am keeping a record of cash donations, but several have been anonymous
Keven’s Appeal letter
Hi there,
With the current extremely difficult situation, it is firstly really important that people look after themselves, and also their relatives, neighbours and friends. Also, charities and food banks are facing a real crisis, and need both food and cash donations. These obviously come first, and I’m sure if we work together, we’ll get through this. We must also all very strictly follow the government’s rules on hand hygiene, self isolation, and social distancing in public.
However, as many of you know, I am a Governor at Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals, and I also volunteer at Bournemouth Hospital in the Emergency Department. I was very moved when I saw the video of an exhausted Critical Care Nurse who couldn’t find any food in the supermarkets, and she was crying. I’ve also seen the film of the inside of an ED department in North Italy, an absolute horror story, and that is coming our way in a few weeks. We MUST do more to help our NHS staff, who are working such incredibly long hours, and often don’t have time to shop, or who find empty shelves in supermarkets.
So I have been talking to my friends in Bournemouth Hospital ED department, and I am now buying with my own funds a couple of wheelbarrow loads of food, and delivering it weekly to Bournemouth Hospital ED, for ED doctors, nurses, clinicians etc to just help themselves. I have set up a way of delivering the food (suitably masked and gloved), without going into ED itself, or seeing any staff or patients, and following social distancing rules at all times. I did this last week, and will be doing it regularly, starting this Wednesday evening (25March). If I can get some more funds, I can increase the frequency of delivery, and perhaps even look at a similar arrangement to Poole Hospital ED.
I must stress that anyone reading this must not go to either hospital ED themselves, but rather go through me.
If anyone would like to donate, if you are passing please put it in an envelope through the letterbox, or post it to me. This can be cash, or a cheque made out to myself. My address is 64 Dudsbury Avenue, Ferndown, Dorset, BH22 8DX. Also, if any of you have any contacts with food providers, please forward this email on to them. I am hoping to arrange direct deliveries to the Emergency Department as well.
I think you all know me, and realise this is not some form of con, I really will give this direct to the NHS staff, with my own money if necessary. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for them. I will also send photos of the food delivery to the U3A, to ensure this is completely legitimate, and getting to the right people. Thank you.
Best Wishes
Kevin Steele