Hello lovely members, Hoping everyone is coping okay and staying safe and well. We know being stuck at home can be challenging even as restrictions ease and we hope you’ve all got everything you need. One of our members, Jane, spotted the call-out below from the brilliant Zarach Leeds who we supported back in November. It was such a shocking reminder just how difficult theses times are for some families right now. Zarach have a supply of beds but the needs of many of the families go far beyond beds. So they have started offering a delivery service of essentials. We agreed with Jane that it felt like a great way to reach out to families in need and support this brilliant organisation who always go above and beyond.
Please keep your nominations coming in. Any organisations or initiatives that you spot or hear about and would like us to support. Just drop us an email - fivehundredreasons@hotmail.com Stay safe! Here’s the post from Zarach. ‘I know you only take referrals from schools but I’ve just had the most heartbreaking visit to a family with literally nothing. The worst bit is they just seem so sad and have no hope. I was wondering if you could help’ -Leeds Health Visitor, June 9th 2020 Family of 4. Mum, dad, 5 and 7 year old. Mum is 8 months pregnant. They live in a 2 bedroom high rise flat. Their neighbour plays loud music every night, throughout the night. She throws rubbish outside their flat and is unkind to the children, scaring them when she sees them. Dad has lost his job and is looking for any basic unskilled work. Mum receives universal credit which they are struggling to survive on. They have nothing ready for baby’s arrival and are worried where he/she will sleep. Mum (at 8 months pregnant) and dad sleep on cushions the floor so the two children can sleep in the one bed they have. Mum says she doesn’t sleep well on the floor and tries to catch up on sleep with short naps during the day. They have one small two seater sofa and very little other furniture. Within 6 hours of this call one of our volunteers had visited the family and delivered a 7 days family fed box. That’s every single item of food they will need for the next 7 days. For families like this one, where we feel we can make a huge difference for them we invite them to our thrive pathway. It’s simple really: 1️⃣We ask the question ‘what do you need next to thrive not just survive?’ 2️⃣We write a three point thrive plan based on the highest leverage short term and long term benefits 3️⃣We link with partnership organisations in the city to get things moving Here’s our plan 1. Link with Housing Leeds to ensure their housing situation is being followed up 2. Link dad with St Vincent’s or Spear to help him write a CV and look for work  3. Supply beds, mattresses and a Moses basket through Zarach and use the power of the people to try and acquire the following secondhand furniture - a wardrobe - a set of drawers - a table and chairs - a two seater sofa The balcony and door are extremely narrow. All furniture must be able to fit through a 70cm door. If you have any of the above items to donate please message through a photo and measurements. We will arrange socially distanced collection at your convenience. Our storage is full of food and beds so we don’t take donated items unless they are going straight to a new home. If you have quality furniture or clothing you no longer need please consider contacting Moortown Furniture, Emmaus or St Gemma’s. All great Leeds charities. If you don’t have any of the above items but would still like to contribute, setting up a £10 a month regular donation at Zarach.org makes the biggest difference to our cash flow projections. Your £10 a month could help us help many, many more families just like this one. Thank you for reading, sharing and liking. We’re constantly wowed by your loyalty and support. Love Bex ❤️💛💙