Hey everyone! Hope you had a lovely Easter break? We’ve two really thoughtful nominations this week both close to home and far afield. Your love, kindness and generosity shows no bounds and ours doesn’t either so here are two beautiful ways, thanks to Cat and Rozi that were able to make a big difference to the lives of Alan The Postman and Max The Taxi Driver.
Loads of love
The admin team x
Here’s the first one:
Hi all,
I want to help my local postman, Alan, who is just an absolute dream.
He struggles with health issues, but is still out come rain or shine (and, let's be honest, it's mainly rain!). He remembers the names of everyone on his route (easy you might think, as they have letters addressed to them, but he also remembers their partners, their families, their pets!).
He gets people birthday cards by working out from their post when their birthdays are (and last year he got me a box of chocolates too!). He spent 20 minutes of his round recently helping me track down my escaped rescue dog, with no thought to how late he was going to finish his shift as a result.
Recently he's had his route reduced, which is going to impact on his earnings, just as he nears retirement.
I know he's worried about it, as he's told me, but he always has a winning smile and is just the kindest, loveliest man you could ever meet.
I know this isn't as dramatic a need as some we see on this group, but to be able to give him something to help him through the next few months, and maybe even treat himself, would bring so much joy.
Thank you for considering my application,
Cat
And Rozi’s:
Hello again folks! i'm putting this one in the pot because it feels like a feasible tangible way to change a family's life.
I don't know if we have a policy about money going overseas or not?
My part of the story is that a friend of mine in Bristol was asking for ideas about how to go about fundraising, because of his concern about his friend Max. I suggested that if he wrote something i would bring it to our group.
I trust Jake as a committed social activist and genuinely good bloke. This is from him:
"Hi all,
My name is Jake and I’m trying to raise money, ideally trying to reach a total of £1300 for my friend Max who is from and lives in the Gambia.
I met him approximately 7 years ago when visiting Gambia and we got on very well. He introduced me to his family and their compound and plantation of lettuce. I remember asking how much they could sell a wheelbarrow full for which would have included planting, growing, harvesting and selling and was astonished that it came to something ridiculous like £0.80. I was also extremely saddened to hear that he had recently lost a younger sister to malaria due to their inability to afford malaria medicine which would have been about £15.
Max was about 25 back then and so now is 32 and I am still in contact with him. He now has 2 children, a wife and says that he takes care/provides for them and also his younger brothers and sisters since his dad is too old to work. I have previously sent Max small amounts to help him out but really what he needs is the ability to earn a living himself.
A way he knows to do this is with a taxi. Unfortunately, comparatively to wages, 2nd hand vehicles aren’t cheap in Gambia. I just checked and the minimum wage is 50 dalasi a day which is about 65p per day!!! Many of the vehicles are shipped from UK and europe and are old MOT failures. This is the reality of a 32yr old man living in an ex British colony with no chance to ever live or study in one of the more wealthy countries in the world (as it is virtually impossible to get a passport). I also enclose a screen grab of the dalasi against the dollar showing it has fallen around 25% over 5 years, meaning, of course, any imports for Gambians cost even more. That coupled with tourism falling post covid really means Max could never afford a taxi on his own.
I personally, am a 39 yr old father, musician and carpenter who live in a caravan at the bottom of someones garden in Bristol and as much as I would love to just give Max £1300, I cannot at the moment as I need to think also about my own security and ability to care for my own daughter.
Anyway, I enclose some photos of me and Max from 7 years ago and a few photos of him and family more recently.
Any donations you can give will be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Jake Slocombe
ps (My father who I haven’t seen for 7 years, actually lives in Gambia (on a teachers pension), and I may try to go and visit him this year and maybe can help Max choose a vehicle (although he may have to choose it on his own as a Tubab (white person) hanging around would probably make it 5 times the price!!)"