by admin | Apr 27, 2020 | COVID19, Food, Lincolnshire, Lincs Connect, LincsConnect
Home Is Where The Heart Is – It’s Not Just Lincolnshire…
Home is where the heart is and it’s not just Lincolnshire. A huge number of volunteers across the country have stepped up to lend their help during the pandemic. They work in the community and from home. The whole nation supports their selfless actions and deeds. I salute you all for your kindness and dedication.
Whether you use social media or not you must surely be aware of some fantastic initiatives across Lincolnshire. By touching on a few I can highlight the hard work that everyone is putting in. Documenting a single initiative will highlight this and countless other selfless acts of kindness. Too numerous to mention but they’re all happening daily.
Home Is Where The Heart Is – Charity Really Does Start At Home
Nerves of steel – I wonder how many onions Barry has had to chop in his kitchen?
Staff of the NHS, police, fire, first responders and others were asked to step up to the mark as lockdown was announced. Many volunteers also sprang into action to lend a hand.
Barry is the head chef at The Pyewipe Inn Lincoln (2020) but found himself without customers thanks to the pandemic. That is until he teamed up with his neighbour Laurance to start cooking from home. Meals for the frontline services became their priority.
Let The Cooking Commence
Thankfully you don’t need a kitchen the size of a village hall to cook a thousand meals. Cook from home in a domestic kitchen while spending no money and having no ingredients. That’s a pretty tall order! Thankfully the generosity of local businesses and the public knows no bounds.
People have been so generous that Barry and Laurance managed to prepare and cook over a thousand meals. Staff at Lincoln County Hospital, Grantham Hospital, Sleaford fire and police crews, Nettleham police HQ, Metheringham fire station, ambulance crews and more. They all benefited from the skills and dedication of this duo.
The men behind the meals… You can find them on Twitter @LiversidgeBaz or click on this picture to find them on Facebook
I might have caved in after chopping my way through my second or third batch of onions so hats off to these guys. They saw the queues at the supermarkets and experienced the empty shelves so decided to put their skills to good use. As a result they made it their priority to make sure our frontline services were fed.
Having food and ingredients delivered from The Pyewipe Inn, (Lincoln), The Old Angel Inn (Bardney), Jordans/Ryvita (Bardney) and Moy Park (Sleaford) to name just a few, the meals are produced at home then locals collect and deliver the meals to the front line workers.
Cooked and portioned
Lids and labels
Baked with love
Appreciated by all
Home Is Where The Heart Is – It’s Not Just About Feeding The Frontline
Taking meals to the workers isn’t just about making sure they are fed and able to do their job. We struggled to get ingredients needed for our meals but we managed to get something. Without doubt, showing a greater understanding and appreciation for the jobs and risks of key workers is paramount.
We all know what a fantastic job the NHS staff, police, fire crews and paramedics are doing during this difficult time. The key worker list is much bigger than that though. The farmers in the picture would’ve been surprised to receive their free lunch but without them we won’t be getting fed in the future.
#StayHomeSaveLives is a very important message for most of us. Perhaps we tend to forget how many key workers still have to go to work to ensure we stay safe at home and have a future to look forward to. It’s not just about the food. It’s also about the recognition and gratitude. Being on the receiving end of a gift is always nice but in these difficult times it means so much more.
Home Is Where The Heart Is – Delivering 250 Meals Each Week
You don’t need to be too much of a mathematician to work out that delivering 250 meals a week will soon lead to 1000 delivered. Actually, the 1000 milestone has already been reached. It won’t be long before we are looking at 1500. The system relies on people delivering the raw ingredients with others collecting the cooked meals for distribution. Logistically it must’ve been a headache and I’m sure the pressure has been high since day one.
The project would never have taken off without the enthusiasm of Barry and Laurance plus the support and generous food donations from Sarah Pickles (The owner of The Pyewipe Inn). Assistance in the kitchen by Julie Ann Clark who also helped to provide some of the fresh veg has been a great help. You can visit Julies charity shop in Horncastle and visit her on Facebook too Thrifty’s Community Charity Shop.
Huge respect to everyone involved but especially to Barry and Laurance who had the vision, skill and foresight to make it all happen.
#LincsConnect Music
The Tin Pigeons are a duo from Rutland…
Being a music lover I follow quite a few local bands, orchestras and choirs so I thought you might like to hear what I’ve found. I follow @TheTinPigeons on twitter and this one is from their back catalogue (click on the picture above to hear their song ‘Steel’). If you like what you hear why not nip across to their YouTube channel, give them a follow on twitter or Facebook
Revivalry – A young band from Cleethorpes
Revivalry @RevivalryBand are a young up and coming band from Cleethorpes who I’ve also been following on Twitter. I’m really pleased to be able to post their first studio recording ‘Run’ here today. I get the feeling this won’t be their last studio recording and it may well be the beginning of something rather big. You can follow them on Twitter, Facebook or on their YouTube channel. Enjoy
If you would like to hear more Indie bands you could give Dave a follow on Twitter @Laamb4 or better still give his website a visit https://www.laamb.co.uk where you’ll find an update for lots of local music and arts plus regular charts and much more:
“This site is dedicated to promoting Artists and Musicians in Lincolnshire. We aim to combine the marketing of local art and music, with features and sales of material produced within Lincolnshire.”
Click on the picture to go straight to the LAAMB website
That’s just about it for this edition but let me leave you with one more note. Please keep it in mind and pass it on whenever you feel it’ll be appropriate:
Click on the picture to go straight to the website. If you know someone who may be affected call 0808 801 0327
Stay Safe
by admin | Mar 27, 2020 | Charity, COVID19, Food, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, LincsConnect, Louth
Food And Support…
I had the pleasure of talking to Paul Hugill the other day about the fantastic work he is doing with his team to feed the vulnerable people in the Louth area. I have to say, he really does ooze enthusiasm! If you ever need to speak to someone with some ‘get up and go’ Paul is your man!
Taking on the mammoth task of feeding the homeless and vulnerable, Paul put out a plea for assistance. Obviously in need of food, food and more food if this task is going to be achieved but he also needs more volunteers too. If you are able to help out in the kitchen or from home, packing or delivery please get in touch. I’ll mention it here but I’ll also post a reminder further down too; Paul is desperately in need of fridges and freezers. Thanks to the very generous donations he has received he is able to get meals cooked and sent out but storage will always be in short supply. If you know of any industrial size fridges and freezers that can be donated on loan I’m sure Paul will be happy to hear from you. In addition, he is short of protein based produce so if there are any butchers out there who can make a donation you know what to do… I’ll post some contact details at the bottom of the blog but I’ll also post links in the pictures too so if you are able to offer any help at all you will hopefully be able to get in touch one way or another.
What’s It All About?
For the link to the Just Giving page just click on this picture
Two nutritious meals a day for those in isolation or are vulnerable during the Coronavirus pandemic. If you think you can help with a cash donation please visit the just giving page and give whatever you can. Money is always welcome of course but Paul is also open do donations of fresh food and even cooked food which will help to take some of the pressure away from his own kitchen.
As well as feeding the vulnerable during this crisis Paul is also committed to helping to feed the homeless in the area by supporting and preparing meals for the East Coast Homeless Outreach. Outstanding! I’m not sure when he gets time to sleep but I do hope he manages to get some rest in between all the good work that he’s doing. Perhaps a quote from The Priory website might be a good idea here:
“…People are at the heart of what we do – you, our valued guests and or staff, most of whom may not have had the best start in life or have learning difficulties and whose potential has been overlooked.”
Just those few words seem to sum up what Paul is all about. Caring for and helping people seems to drive him forward and keep him motivated. With his team of willing staff he has set up a project under The Serendipity Initiative to help feed those in isolation during the Coronavirus pandemic. It’s a huge task and your help, however big or small that might be, will be welcomed with open arms. Would you believe that Paul has set a challenge to supply the two nutritious meals a day for the vulnerable ‘free of charge’? Obviously any donations to help the project to succeed will be gratefully received.
If you use Facebook you might like to take a look at this video as I think it explains more in just a few minutes than I could do in a thousand words.
Take a look at what Paul and his team for the community
Please also take a look at The Serendipity Initiative to see if you can help. Remember, if you don’t have cash, you don’t have food to donate, you aren’t able to help with food preparation, you CAN help by simply spreading the word. Talk you your friends, copy the links from this blog and post them on your social media pages or copy the link to this blog and post the whole thing. Every little helps so please try to do whatever you can.
What’s Needed?
Right now Paul is looking for any help that you can donate, storage space, fridges, freezers and protein rich foods. All other food and cash donations are obviously always welcome of course.
Contact:
Here are a few useful contact numbers and addresses:
Tel Louth 01597 602930
eMail paul@sevendipityinitiative.co.uk
Website www.serendipityinitiative.co.uk
Facebook Serendipity Louth
Twitter @PrioryLouth
Paul has had a mention in a previous blog with his Serendipity Initiative and the work that is going on to support people during the Coronavirus Pandemic. If you would like to read more about that follow this link: ‘Coronavirus – We can Help Each Other’
Thank you all for taking the time to read this post. Please feel free to copy it and send it on to your friends by email or on social media. The more people we can get to see it, the better.
Stay healthy, stay happy and STAY IN.
Best wishes
by admin | Mar 22, 2020 | Afternoon Tea, Bawtry, Beauty, beauty Therapy, Bracebridge Heath, Coronavirus, COVID19, Doddington Hall, Food, Gainsborough, Garden Centres, Gardening, Grimsby, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, LincsConnect, Pennell's Garden Centre, Petwood Hotel, Scunthorpe, Take Away, Takeaway, The Small Beer Ltd, two Hotel, Waxing
Lincolnshire Businesses Fight Back
It can’t have escaped your attention that since the Corona Virus outbreak businesses and communities have adapted at an amazing rate. Closures of our friendly and much loved businesses have meant local (and national) bosses have had to seriously ‘up their game’ in order to carry on trading. We have enjoyed the comforts and luxuries of fine dining, takeaway dining, drinking at home, drinking in the local pubs, visiting and socialising with friends and family, theatre, cinema….. I could take up the whole blog just listing the things we have been enjoying that have come to an abrupt halt over the last few days. Finances are obviously a big concern so making swift decisions to recoup potential future losses has been a priority for many.
Takeaway Or Takeaway…?
Being used to having so much choice it’s inevitable that the sudden closure of our local businesses has come as quite a shock. Finances aside, it’s been heartening to see local hotels step up to the mark to carry on providing a service for us. In Woodhall Spa the beautiful Petwood Hotel (the home of so much Lincolnshire and National history) has turned it’s hand to providing take away (or order and collect) ‘Petwood Afternoon Tea’ as well as their special ‘Petwood Basics Box’ – I haven’t had chance to sample the latter yet but I’m sure it’ll be a very special treat. It’s certainly not going to be your traditional idea of a fast food takeaway that’s for sure. Perhaps that’ll be the subject of a separate blog all of its own.
Home of so much local and national history, a beautiful building and delightful gardens it’s hardly surprising that Managing Director Emma Brealey and her fabulous team would ‘step up to the mark’ and produce something special to keep their loyal customers and friends happy. If you haven’t visited yet I highly recommend you make it a special treat sometime later this year when the Corona Virus ordeal has relented. Here’s a little reminder of what you might experience:
Possibly one of the countries most photographed hotels. the Petwood Hotel is certainly outstanding. Give them a call on 01526 352 411 to book your next stay
Beautiful Borders
Lincs Connect doesn’t ‘just’ cover Lincolnshire. We have lots of local businesses on our borders serving people from our county and one such business is Bare Waxing on Bawtry Road in Hatfield Woodhouse. Just down the road from Scunthorpe and not too far from Gainsborough this beauty salon is run by Nichola. Initially starting as a small beauty therapy business I have seen Nichola build it up with increasing members of staff and now a second salon in Doncaster too. Obviously offering a waxing service but also including fake tans, nails, massages and all the usual beauty services. Having known Nichola for some time I can personally recommend her and her team.
Bare Waxing in Hatfield Woodhouse is certainly worth a visit if you’re in the Scunthorpe area. You can contact Nichola on tel:01302846873
Fancy A Tipple?
Drinking in the bars, restaurants and hotels of the County aren’t an option at the moment but if you fancy a drink you could visit one of our many breweries for a takeaway beer or perhaps pay a visit to Small Beer Ltd in Bracebridge Heath, Lincoln, Don’t be fooled by their name, ‘Small’ Beer isn’t actually a small shop, it’s more of a very successful going concern that has been around for over 40 years. selling bottled beers and ciders through to cask ales as well as soft drinks and spirits. In fact, they’ve got quite a range and I’m looking forward to paying a visit very soon. Just to make life easier, you can order online or even through their own App. Life doesn’t get much easier!
Small Beer Ltd are open to the public and can be found on Churchill Business Park, Sleaford Road, Bracebridge Heath or why not give them a ring on 01522 540 431
How Does Your Garden Grow…With Free Delivery
As many of us will be spending more time at home it makes perfect sense that Pennell’s Garden Centres in Lincoln, Cleethorpes and Sleaford should be offering free delivery of plants, shrubs and equipment. As I write this I can see that the sun is shining outside and I can hear the sounds of lawn mowers and scarifiers. Spring is here and while we have an enforced period at home what better way to responding your time than catching up with the gardening and preparing it for (hopefully) a glorious Summer. Why not give the team a call to discuss your early Spring purchases
Pennell’s Garden Centres are located in Lincoln, Cleethorpes and Sleaford. If you would like to contact them for your Spring purchases just click pn this picture to see their website
On The subject of Free Delivery…
Did you know that the Doddington Hall Farm Shop is now offering free delivery and they use an electric car to do it too! I’m sure everyone in Lincoln must be aware of Doddington Hall with its lovely walks, fantastic building and fabulous cafe and shops. Sadly the cafe is closed at the moment but the Farm shop is still in full swing offering free local delivery for up to 10 miles and a very small charge for journeys up to 25 miles. Perhaps, as a farm shop where they produce much of their own produce I should schedule another dedicated blog to cover it and some of the other wonderful farm shops that we have in the County. For those of us who are regular frequenters of Doddington Hall, we’ll know exactly how good it is. If you haven’t tried their produce, you’ll just have to take my word for it. You can visit the Doddington Hall website simply by clicking on the picture below:
Just A Sample
Obviously there is much more going on in our lovely County so this is just a very small snapshot. If you would like me to do a full blog on your business why not get in touch? You can tweet me of course @LincsConnect or drop me an email at martin@lincsconnect.co.uk I’ll be more than happy to help promote your local business or charity. Talking of which, have you seen my ever expanding blog which highlights the good things people are doing during the CoronaVirus pandemic? If you know of any good deeds happening around the county that need a mention please do get in touch.
Contact me if you would like your business or charity adding to this blog
That’s all I have time for at the moment but there will be more blogs and updates coming very soon.
Stay safe everyone. Keep your distance and keep your hands clean
by admin | Mar 20, 2020 | books, Caistor, Charity, Children, Coronavirus, COVID19, Food, Grantham, Grimsby, Hashtags, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, Lincs Police, LincsConnect, LincsPolice, Networking, police, Schools, Scunthorpe, Stamford, Take Away, Takeaway
Support And Help From Around The County
The aim of this blog is to highlight some of the fantastic support that is being offered by local businesses, charities and individuals. To access more information including contact information please click/tap on the logo/pictures below:
Lincoln Area
Washingborough Academy are providing hot meals for the elderly in isolation in the Washingborough area during the coronavirus pandemic. Please let your elderly neighbours know about this project. Click on the picture for contact details.
Bracebridge Heath, Lincoln. Your community needs volunteers NOW. Can you help your local community? Contact Andy by clicking on the picture to find the contact form
Lincoln. Browns Pie Shop are delivering to your home or work 7 days a week from 12.00pm-8.30pm within 10 miles of the shop
Lincoln. The Salted Orange are offering a ‘not for profit’ meal delivery service for the over 65s. £20.00 weekly for three meals a day delivered to your door twice weekly
Lincoln Veg Out Lincoln provide a delivery service for their frozen vegan meals. Click the picture to go to their website or follow them on twitter @vegoutlincoln
Lincolnshire Grow Your Own Veg – skip the supermarket queue by growing your own veg from seed. Not sure how? Click on the picture to go to the website for more info or follow @strawbaleukman on Twitter. There is even a book to download too. No Soil Needed….
ONLINE. Dance classes for all age groups online. Why not join your children and have some fun? It’ll keep you fit too!
Lincoln, Norton Hub are providing a volunteer led local help scheme to those in isolation
Lincoln Small Beer is open to the public for beer, cider, wine, soft drinks, spirits, cask ale & kegs. Call them on 01522 540431 or click the picture to visit the website.
Lincoln The Golden Eagle is providing home deliveries too
Lincoln. School closure interim provision. To book call 01522 283027
Lincoln – BetterWeb Space is offering FREE basic websites during the Coronavirus pandemic.
Lincoln & Lincolnshire – Octagon Technology has produced a blog for remote workers. A useful blog about VoIP and how you can use it while working from home. Click on the picture to visit the blog post
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire. “Self-isolation can be difficult for even the most resilient of us. If you’re experiencing loneliness or feeling low, call the emotional support helpline 0800 001 4331. Open 24/7 for confidential support”
Lincolnshire & Beyond. Call Connect Bus are still working to help our community stay mobile and now providing FREE transport too. Call 03452343344 for info
Lincolnshire. Lincs Libraries may have the answer to self-isolation boredom with their ‘download and listen’ service. It’s FREE with your library card
Lincolnshire Co-Op have announced at 12.00pm 22 Mar that they have reviewed their opening times and are advertising jobs for Customer Service Assistants and Delivery Drivers. The new store opening times will be 7.00am – 8.00pm with restrictions of two units on all products. Click the logo to go to their web page.
East Lindsey Lincs Digital partnered with TED East Lindsey are here to help with digital connections. If you know someone who needs help connecting with Skype or FaceTime visit their website for more info. Simply click the image to go to the website.
Lincolnshire This is a useful blog by @CCDigitalUK which explains how to market your Hand Made Products for sale on Etsy. An ideal opportunity to use some time at home to brush up on some marketing skills. Click on the picture to go to the blog post
Lincolnshire Live are promoting Lincolnshire businesses for free on 2 April 20. Click on the picture to follow the link
Gelston FREE delivery on packs of lamb meat. For more info click on the picture to follow @GelstonLamb on twitter
Gelston Lamb – Free delivery (for orders over £35.00) within 10 miles or 15 miles for orders over £70.00. Fresh lamb delivered to the Grantham, Sleaford, Ruskington, Heckington and surrounding villages. Order yours no by calling 01400 251501
Charity/Community Help
Lincoln – Bracebridge Heath, Can YOU volunteer to help your local community in Bracebridge Heath? Please contact Andy ASAP by clicking the picture to go to the website. THE COMMUNITY NEEDS YOU
West Lindsey Business Rate Application Form. West Lindsey still have money available and believe there are still businesses that have not claimed
South Holland, Spalding. South Holland are providing additional support for those in the area who are struggling financially as a result of the Coronavirus. Click on the picture to find the Linc. Also contactable on Twitter @SHollandDC
Lincolnshire Rural Support Network (LRSN) @lincsruralhelp provides help and support to Lincolnshire farmers and their families. Cal 0800 138 1710 or click on the picture to open the link
Lincoln Washingborough Academy are providing hot meals for the elderly in isolation in the Washingborough area during the coronavirus pandemic. Please let your elderly neighbours know about this project. Click on the picture for contact details.
Louth. Are you struggling to feed yourself or your family? Two hearty meals delivered to your door each day could help you. Call 01507 602930
Spalding Covid Kindness Team. Contact the team for help with delivery of food, essentials & medications
North East Lincolnshire Single Point of Access (open 24/7) for your health, wellbeing, social care and mental health needs. Call 01472 256256 or click on the image to visit the website.
Lincoln. If you’re looking for volunteers please contact VCS Lincoln who will help promote your opportunities. Click on the picture to visit their website
Lincoln Community Larder (food bank) are in constant need of food and supplies. Can you donate something please? Click on the picture to visit their website and locate a drop off point near you
Lincolnshire Age UK East are continuing to provide telephone advice and support to older people in the East and West Lindsey areas as well as in North Lincolnshire. Click on the picture to visit the website
Lincoln/south Lincolnshire Can YOU help please? Age UK need extra volunteers NOW. You can find them on Twitter @ageuklsl or alternatively click on this picture to go to their website
Lincolnshire Community Health Services NEED YOUR HELP. @LincsNHS are offering paid work and flexible hours in return for your help NOW. email grace.gourley@nhs.net or call 07824 550 846
Boston, Grantham & Lincoln are looking for temporary staff to support catering and domestic work. Go to Twitter @ULHT_News or click on this picture to go to the website for more info
Lincolnshire County Council have regular video updates so please click this link for service updates and click on the picture for the regular live updates.
Lincoln If you need help with food, food deliveries or can lend a hand visit Lincoln Food Partnership
Rutland To find out what help is available in the Rutland and South Lincolnshire area visit the Rutland council website by clicking on the picture
Uffington For assistance in Uffington and the local area please contact Rev’d Fr Aran P Beesley by phone 07590 055905 or email aran.beesley@gmail.com
UK. If you haven’t visited this .Gov website yet, DO IT NOW. Click on the picture to go to the website
UK. If you haven’t visited this .NHS website yet, DO IT NOW. You can go to the website by clicking on the picture
Lincolnshire. Can you volunteer? Click on the picture to go to the website
Lincolnshire Police request that you click on this picture to take you to the link for help and advice both nationally and locally for Coronavirus issues
Lincolnshire Police request that you do NOT contact them for Coronavirus related advice. There are other, more well equipped agencies available with information for you. Only call 101 for police related matters. Click on the picture to go to the website for info
East Lindsey Fortnightly activity packs for the over 50s. If you know anyone over 50 in the area who is isolated or alone please let them know about the services on offer. Click on the picture to reach the link
#NHS From 1 Aril @NHSLincsWest @NHSLincsEast @NHS_SouthLincs @SWLincs_NHS will all come under the umbrella account of @NHSLincsCCG
Lincolnshire FionaDuncan @OrigArtPrints is offering 20 (first come, first served) FREE cards for those of you who would like to send a message to friends/family/colleagues in the NHS. Just quote #Free2NHS to take advantage of these printed cards. All you will be asked to pay is the postage. You can also find Fiona on facebook
Click on the picture to find the link to Fiona on Facebook
Ease Lindsey DC now have £62m to support small business grants. Click on the picture to open the link
NHS Coronavirus checker. Please complete this short survey for the NHS by clicking on this picture.
#LincsConnectJobs
Lincolnshire Food industry Jobs. Many jobs are available within the food industry sector NOW. Click on the picture to follow the link or follow @GreaterLincsLEP on twitter
Martin Lewis Money Matters
Martin Lewis the Money Saving Expert explains what’s available
Martin Lewis – Update for the Self Employed 24/3/20
Martin Lewis update for the Self Employed 27 Mar 20
Alford
Aby (Near Alford) Saturday evening wood fired oven pizza to take away (5.00pm-7.30pm). Call 01507 451366 before 4.00pm. ZERO CONTACT collection system of course. Days/times may change according to government regulations
Boston
Boston Market will continue as planned but will sell food only. Please respect Social Distancing when you visit and give a friendly smile to the stall holders
Cleethorpes & Grimsby
Cleethorpes. Toven’s Cafe offering food deliveries. Call 01472 488590 or click on the picture to visit the website.
Cleethorpes. Spill The Beans are offering a FREE delivery service to Cleethorpes & Grimsby areas. Call 01472 601392 or click the picture to go to their website
Cleethorpes. Veronica’s Larder is offering a takeaway service. Call 01472 823875 or click on the picture to visit the website
Grimsby Age UK North East Lincs are offering a meal delivery service. Call 01472 344976 or click on the picture to go to the website
Gainsborough
Gainsborough The Gainsborough market will continue until further notice supplying food items. Please obey the social distancing rules.
Grantham
Grantham. The Lunchbox delivers food around Grantham to keep your hunger at bay. Give them a call today
Grantham Gelston Lamb provide mail order fresh lamb direct from the farm. To place your order visit them on Twitter @GelstonLamb or on Facebook Gelston Lamb. You can order by phone too on 01400 251 501
Grantham The Grantham market will continue until further notice supplying food items. Please obey the social distancing rules.
Louth
Louth Award winning Meridian Meats don’t just supply top quality meat! Currently baking extra bread too in order to help feed the town. Pop in but keep a social distance for the safety of everyone
Louth. Are you struggling to feed yourself or your family? Two hearty meals delivered to your door each day could help you. Call 01507 602930
Louth Market is still open for food sales during the Coronavirus crisis. Please respect the Safe Distance rule
Market Rasen
Market Rasen Cote Hill Cheese are now providing a MAIL ORDER service for their cheese so now is the time to replenish your stock. You can give them a call on 01673 828 481, find them on Twitter @CoteHillCheese and on Facebook Cote Hill Cheese. Click on the picture to go straight to their website
Spalding
Spalding. Is your computer in need of repair? TCS are offering FREE pickup while we go through the process of self-isolation
Spalding Covid Kindness Team. Contact the team for help with delivery of food, essentials & medications
Spilsby
Hundleby (Spilsby) The Elm Tree are now providing take away afternoon tea for just £10.00. Call them to book your treat on 01790 753534 or click on this image to go to their website
Sleaford
Gelston Lamb – Free delivery (for orders over £35.00) within 10 miles or 15 miles for orders over £70.00. Fresh lamb delivered to the Grantham, Sleaford, Ruskington, Heckington and surrounding villages. Order yours no by calling 01400 251501
Stamford & Rutland
Stamford. Central Cafe Stamford are providing a delivery service for those who can’t get out due to self isolation. Minimum spend £10.00
Stamford. Contact the growing network of coordinated volunteers who are ready to help wherever possible. Find them on Twitter @OurStamford or click on the picture to go straight to their website.
Stamford The Stamford Cheese and Wine Cellar is open for business and is also providing mail order deliveries. Click on the picture to go to their website.
Stamford The Copper Room is providing a home delivery service for your bar until 11.00pm. Click on the picture to go their website and follow them on twitter @CopperStamford
Rutland For updates on what’s available in the Rutland area please click on the picture to go to the Rutland council website
There’s More…
This list is by no means complete so rather than producing more and more blogs with contacts lists this one will be updated regularly. Please save this URL to your favourites on whatever device you are using. More headings will be added to make searching the blog easier. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE tell your friends about this blog. It’s here for us all and it’s not for profit. Spread the word and stay safe
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by admin | Mar 17, 2020 | Charity, Coronavirus, COVID19, Lincolnshire, lincolnshire Business, Lincs Connect, Networking, Uncategorized
Ring Any Bells?
I often channel hop when listening to my car radio between clients and recently I happened upon a programme on the BBC World Service. The general gist of the programme revolved around the psychology of giving to charity. Obviously all charities rely on us for donations and fund raising events but the programme got me thinking; Have we become numb to the pleading of charities? I know that many of you will give regularly to your chosen charity, some of you may volunteer while others might be supporting the charities by shopping in the charity shops or taking part in the many events that are held each year.
Who Or What Is To Blame?
Have we become numb to the fundraising calls of the local charities? Are we becoming numb to their pleading without even realising it? Perhaps you may recall the horrendous pictures on our TV screens of the ‘flies in their eyes’ images of starving children in African countries who were too weak to even blink. This is going to sound dreadful I know but perhaps those images have lost their impact now. Charity adverts have evolved and may now include images of children in school wishing they could get a better education to have a better chance of fending for themselves in future years. The programme considered both images and the psychological impact of each. Both images raise funds for the charities but neither image is more effective than the other. Rather, some people are pre-disposed to giving to one image over the other with the net result being ‘both images work’.
These are just examples of course as there are a huge number of charities working in different ways to raise funds in order to help people and animals. How would it work though if there was just one charity in the world? Would that charity cease to exist as a result of its own success? Perhaps, but that’s just hypothetical of course because the reality is that there are thousands upon thousands of charities around the world. In fact, these charities make so much ‘noise’ that perhaps we are losing touch with what they are trying to do. By ‘noise’ I mean TV advertising, radio advertising, newspaper advertising and of course the huge bombardment that we get on social media. That’s a “huge bombardment” of ‘everything’ and not just from the charities. Are we in danger of suffering from information overload and therefore switching off from the issues that really matter to us?
Lincolnshire Charities
We have lots of different charities in our region but we should all be thankful that they exist. We have the Lincoln YMCA @YMCALincs who look out for and care for many vulnerable people. They truly deserve our attention as they help to get people off the streets, into accommodation and give them a new start in life. If you haven’t heard of Leonie’s battle yet you need to give her a follow on twitter @chillibean2018 and follow her journey as she undergoes surgery and intensive physiotherapy to help her walk after having ben born Quad Cerebral Palsy. Such a brave little girl and a dedicated Mum who is constantly fund raising in order to pay for her life changing surgery. At the other end of the age scale you’ll find @AgeUKLindsey who are an independent charity offering advice and support for the over 50s. I wonder if we all realise how lucky we are to have such a huge number of heroes in our County who spend valuable time looking after others?
What’s next?
Surely a blog of this sort in March 2020 can’t go out without mentioning Coronavirus (COVID-19). This dreadful virus has touched everyone here. A global pandemic which is having a huge local impact. On a personal note I have cancelled group exercise classes and in my role at LincsConnect I’m seeing first hand how worried people are becoming. This pandemic isn’t just affecting health (although that is a huge worry) but the disruption it is causing is having a massive negative impact on businesses both large and small. I’ve seen a huge increase in businesses and charities posting to the #LincsConnect hashtag in order to get their messages around the County. Some are offering support, some are informing us of changes while others are asking for help. What can be done?
You’re Not Alone
Those of you who know me on twitter as @MANDARINLEISURE will no doubt remember that I post a positive and (hopefully) uplifting post each morning along with an excerpt from a song. I wake each morning (that’s always a good start)! with a tune in my head. It happens every day and I have no control over which song it will be. That’s my ‘ear worm’ so, being a friendly sort of chap, I have to share it. Well why should I have to suffer alone? It’s become a daily ritual now and I know that people from around the world are looking out for it and joining in with the fun. Here’s an example for you. Let’s see if you can guess the song:
Thinking of all the charitable work that’s going on around the county perhaps ‘now’ is the time to be thinking about how we can help each other. @LincsConnect has nearly 11,000 ‘local’ followers. If each one of them visited the hashtag #LincsConnect a couple of times a day to see who they could support we would all benefit hugely. It’s all very well posting your message (on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter) using the hashtag #LincsConnect to tell people what you are doing, what you need or how you can help but it won’t do you any good at all if no one is bothering to look at the hashtag to see what or who they can support. I’m sorry if that sounds abrupt but the truth is, we are in deep trouble and we need to pull together to get through this problem safely.
I’m No Expert But…
I’m not an economist. I’m not a high flying business executive. I’m not an ace charity worker. I am just ‘me’ but I can see how we can start to help each other. I’m not talking about getting bread and milk for those who are in isolation. That has already been broadcast across social media (I’ll post my version of the form for you to print and utilise) and is certainly going to help many people. What I’m talking about is using and looking at the #LincsConnect hashtag to see who is in need. Trust me, when you help others you’re more likely to have that help reciprocated when you need it most.
STOP!
Perhaps if those companies who only post their own messages and never look to see how they can help others changed their habits during this period of uncertainty we could start to achieve more. There is an old saying: “What goes around, comes around”. NOW is the time to be supportive of others, to be charitable, to look to see what can be done for others because together we can be absolutely AWESOME!
Take a look at this video to see how you can help on Twitter: How To Search #LincsConnect
For Those Of You Who Are Able
As promised, here is the form for you to print and utilise. Please use it wisely.
What Next?
I’ve heard people asking “What will life be like after the virus”? There will be no income and (according to some) no hope! My answer to that is this:
Life after the virus will carry on. There will be an income because we will carry on working. I have hope and that hope is based on my belief in you.
Todays blog was a little different but I think it’s an important one. What do you think?
