Shankill gives hand cream help to care homes and hospitals
“Like every parish in the Diocese, adapting to the challenges of Coronavirus has been quite a task for us here in Shankill,” writes the rector, Revd Mark Harvey.
“Just before the lockdown measures were put in place, we delivered a letter to every parishioner giving them information about how they could stay connected with us on social media and through a dedicated helpline number. That proved to be a good thing to do as people have made use of both.
“As the weeks have gone by however, our staff team has been keen to be proactive rather than reactive, and so we contacted some of our local care homes just after Easter to ask if there was anything that the parish could do that would both encourage and support their staff.
“I was not expecting the response I got from the manager of the first home I rang – hand cream! As the hand–washing regime on the frontline is even more stringent than most of us employ at home, many of the staff were experiencing painfully dry skin on their hands. I shared the suggestion with the other care homes, and it met with a hugely positive response. We quickly got a large plastic box, stuck a big label on the lid and placed it at the gate of the rectory. This was followed by a Facebook appeal and within an hour bottles and tubes of hand cream started to appear!
“We have since extended the gesture beyond care homes to Lurgan Hospital and also to Belfast City Hospital where a couple of parishioners work. As I write, we are filling a large box to go to a temporary communal staff area at Craigavon Area Hospital. Each box has also contained a number of handmade pocket–sized crosses kindly made by Liz Miller, and again these have been greatly appreciated.
“To date we have distributed over 500 hand creams and it has helped the parish feel that we are contributing in a very small way to support local frontline staff, and at the same time demonstrate the care and compassion of Jesus.”
Pictured above with their gifts, staff from Lurgan Hospital