J'AIME MAY 2020

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portrait of inspirational Captain Tom Moore, which she is raffling off to donate to Tom’s fundraising campaign. She aims to raise £1,000 with the project. Polly says: “For many of us Tom symbolises hope, courage and possibility. When I saw his campaign I wanted to donate but being a single mother and a self-employed artist I knew my donation would be a drop in the ocean. Every little helps of course but I wanted to give more than I was able to afford. “So I decided to draw a portrait in the hopes I could sell it for £50 and that could be my donation. However as soon as I posted it online the response has been phenomenal and quickly someone suggested I should raffle the drawing to give more people the opportunity of donating and to hopefully raise more money for Tom so that is what I did. “I set up my own Just Giving page so I can keep track of donations and I am counting every £1 donated as an entry to win the portrait. So far I have raised more than £900 and there is still lots of time to enter. The winner will be announced via a live stream on VE Day, Friday May 8, at 8pm. So far the post has been seen more than 40,000 times and has been sent all over the world. To donate visit www. justgiving.com/crowdfunding/pollysportrait “Tom reminded me that we can all do something. This portrait is my contribution and has reignited a passion for portraits. I have since set up another page to showcase my charcoal works @pollyorton_art on Instagram and who knows where this journey will lead.” Freelance fashion designer Rebekah Brennan, from LAURA SUTTON HAS ALSO BEEN DONATING SWEET TREATS TO KEY WORKERS. PHOTO BY DANI SALMON PHOTOGRAPHY KIRAN RAI IS HOPING TO SPREAD POSITIVITY BY SENDING HAND-WRITTEN CARDS AND LETTERS TO PEOPLE IN ISOLATION Sutton Coldfield, has recently moved back home from New York where she had plans to return to working as a full time fashion designer - plans which have been put on hold due to the pandemic. Since coming back Rebekah has had a lot of free time on her hands and decided to use it productively. She was introduced to schemes such as For the Love of Scrubs, and Loft 25 – NHS PPE Campaign by friends to make up scrubs, overalls, NHS headbands and scrub bags. Rebekah has not been doing this alone; her mum Christine Babbington has also been doing her bit. Christine has been an interior and soft furnishings seamstress all of her life, so together they make quite the team. All of these amazing necessities for our front line staff have been provided free of charge but donations of fabric have been provided as well as Rebekah and Christine buying their own. The scrubs have been given to staff at Walsall Manor, scrub bags to Good Hope, and the overalls will be distributed to clinics and hospitals across Birmingham. So far the duo have made some 30 scrub sets with more in progress, 25 scrub bags, and 20 hearts, with headbands and masks currently in the making. “Although the world seems a different place outside, being able to do positive things and having a focus to help is rewarding in more ways than one,” says Christine. Rebekah adds: “Take one day at a time, and remember the little things can help!” NHS administration assistant Louise Tomlinson, from Castle Bromwich, volunteers for a leading first aid charity and has raised £300 through a donation 8
page on Facebook. But she wanted to do more to help support the wider NHS team. Louise, who enjoys crocheting as a hobby, was introduced to the concept of the ‘ear saver/mask adjuster’ by her daughter and decided to put her skills to use by creating them. These handy devices are designed to fit around the back of the head and take the strain of the elastic on PPE masks from behind the ears. To date Louise has given out 200 of these helping hands, free of charge, to staff in a variety of establishments such as Heartlands ICU, Good Hope, private care homes, doctors’ surgeries, UHCW and Solihull council. Louise has a message for everyone staying safe at home during the crisis. She says: “We are isolating now, so all of our loved ones can be present when we can get together.” After seeing a nurse on Facebook describing how dry and chapped her lips were from wearing masks at work, Sammi Eadon decided to help. The payroll administrator, from Great Barr, had noticed people were raising money for hand creams for nurses and doctors but not lip balms, so she set up a Go Fund Me page on both Facebook and Instagram telling people what she wanted to do and how they could help. After raising £245 through her initiative, Sammi bought 30 tubs of Carmex, 50 Vaseline and 16 FM lip balms, which were taken to Good Hope hospital where they were distributed between wards including A&E and the intensive care unit. Kind-hearted taxi driver Martin Keay, from Great Barr, has been offering his services free of charge to carers and hospital staff needing to get to work safely or needing to visit the supermarket after long, tiring shifts, as well as helping people in the community by dropping off medication to those who are high risk and are following government advice to isolate. Martin has also been shopping for elderly neighbours who aren’t able to go out. He has been on call at all hours, be it early in the morning or late at night, to help out where he can - and this is all in between his normal job as a taxi driver. Martin says: “During these times we all need to stay safe and look out for the people around us.” For many of us in isolation, not being able to see, touch or feel close to our loved ones can be really difficult. Experiencing these strange times can often leave us with feelings of sadness, loneliness and trying to keep positive isn’t always the easiest. Kiran Rai, founder of The Search for Happiness, is on a mission to spread positivity, love and happiness in this time of need. Her idea stemmed from her blog TSFH, which she started following a breakup, during this time she experienced times of feeling alone which sparked a thought to set-up a COVID-19 project to help those that are particularly vulnerable and don’t have family around them. “The idea of the project is people can reach out to me and I will send them a letter filled with positive messages to help us through these difficult times,” says Kiran, from the West Midlands. The cards can also be sent to a friend or family member as a surprise. The message is handwritten to add a personal touch and can also be sent as attachments as an email. “It’s a helping hand, I’m putting my hand out to help others so they know that someone is there… this could make a huge difference to someone’s life.” This project is for everyone so if you would like to receive or send a card, get in touch with Kiran at www.tsfh.co.uk or kiran_rai672@gmail.com. LICHFIELD VOLUNTEER CO-ORDINATOR LAURA SUTTON. PHOTO BY DANI SALMON PHOTOGRAPHY
Page 1 and 2: M AY 2 0 2 0 J’AIME Y O U R L O C
Page 3 and 4: Welcome to J’AIME As the coronavi
Page 5 and 6: During the current Covid-19 crisis
Page 7: more than 20 volunteers supporting
Page 12 and 13: I N T E R I O R S Outdoor living WI
Page 14 and 15: PLANTERS FROM A SELECTION AT GARDEN
Page 16 and 17: F E AT U R E Only the interval WITH
Page 18 and 19: LO CA L A R E A Rainbows of hope LI
Page 20 and 21: F O O D & D R I N K Masterchef magi
Page 22 and 23: H E A LT H Stay home, stay safe, ke
Page 24 and 25: E D U CAT I O N Time for change AS
Page 26 and 27: W H AT ’ S O N Online show for fo
Page 28 and 29: THIS UNIQUE SPANISH HOTEL IS ONE OF
Page 30 and 31: FA S H I O N Fashionably fit AS GET
Page 32 and 33: B E AU T Y Skincare as easy as 1 2
Page 34 and 35: H E A LT H Zoom in for online consu
Page 36: Thank you TO ALL THE NHS AND KEY WO

J'AIME MAY 2020

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