March 2022 – Link to Hope, Ukraine, and first event of the year at the Farm Animal Sanctuary
Link to Hope – Ukraine
I’m not sure where to start given the terrible situation in Ukraine. I happened to be attending an exhibition on Thursday 24 February where Lisa from Link to Hope and Simon from Door of Hope had a stand which had been planned months before to encourage individuals and church groups to support their causes helping people in some Eastern European countries, with both supporting projects in Ukraine. When I met them they had been trying to get in touch with their contacts in Ukraine to see how the charities could best support them following the invasion.
Please check their websites and Facebook pages to see the support they are providing. https://linktohope.co.uk/home/about/ukraine-updates/ To date they have sent money to someone supporting elderly and disabled people unable to leave Ukraine, and money to purchase beds, bedding, an industrial washing machine and tumble dryer and money for fuel and food to support some existing community projects offer support to refugees in Moldova.
If you can afford to support financially, please do so, as the money can then target exactly what they need. https://linktohope.co.uk/campaigns/donate-to-the-ukraine/ It is lovely to see people donating items to be sent to Ukraine, but that can put a strain on the support organisations receiving the items if they get too many similar things that need sorting and storing. If you can’t afford to donate financially then do still donate items as that shows your support and hopefully the items will be put to good use.
I’d arranged to go to the Link to Hope stand at the exhibition to drop off some of night light holders I bought last month in Ikea. I bought some extra trays of them for Link to Hope to use in the shoeboxes they pack, or where they occasionally have to add items to shoeboxes which seem underweight. I was also able to drop off some story books which had been donated with the shoeboxes last November, which they will hopefully be able to sell in their charity shops to raise more funds. (Printed books aren’t allowed in the shoeboxes.)
It seems strange still shopping for items to go in the shoeboxes but hopefully the war in Ukraine will end soon and people will be able to return to their homes, in which case the shoeboxes and their contents will be even more important, and will still be needed in Moldova, Romania and Bulgaria.
Craft Gifts
The theme for Link to Hope for March is craft gifts. Hand made head bands, pencil and glasses cases, lavender bags, craft kits, puppets and sewing kits. There are lots patterns on Pinterest, and I will add some of my own patterns on here at some point! These are some of previous creations.
Shopping bargains
My bargains this month have been further beanie hats from Poundland reduced to 25p !!!! I’ve bought quite a few but most are labelled as ladies or girls, though I think some would be suitable for men, but I will concentrate on knitting ones for men.
One Below had some children’s hat and gloves sets for £1.00 so I bought one set in royal blue. They also had some detangle brushes for 79p. Unfortunately they no longer had packs of 8 toothbrushes for £1.00 you now only get 6 for £1.00 so it’s cheaper to buy the twin packs in Tesco, so I did! I bought several twin packs of toothbrushes for 25p a pack, and also bought some of their individually wrapped bars of soap for 15p, and toothpaste for 50p. I try and buy a few of each, every time I shop in Tesco.
One of my local What! stores is closing down and everything is 50% off the original price. They didn’t have much left and some original prices seemed to be higher than in the other local store, but I managed to get some bargains. I’d been struggling to find hairbrushes for a reasonable price but they had the folding hairbrush and mirrors which were 89p full price so approximately 45p each. They also had a full size black spiral brush for 97p so approximately 49p, and some rose gold and black full size hairbrushes which would have been £1.00 full price so bought 2 for 50p each – I should have bought more but there was no price on the shelf so I wasn’t sure how much they’d be until I got them to the till.
My other bargains from there were some yellow bead jewellery kits for 30p each, which fit in well with this month’s theme, travel size connect 4 games for 50p each, twin packs of playing cards 75p per twin pack, twin pack of mini led keychain torches – 50p per twin pack, and a pack of 4 pairs of medium size cotton work gloves 45p for the 4 pairs so roughly 12p a pair !
I’ve started to knit some sunflowers to show my support for Ukraine. I may try and knit some more to sell to raise funds for Link to Hope. I found some patterns on Pinterest.
The Farm Animal Sanctuary
The first event on the site in 2022 will be on Good Friday 15th April from 11:00am – till 3:00pm and will be A Day of Hoppy Easter Fun. It will mean you will be the first explorers to see who’s out and about after winter.
It will include the Farm Animal Sanctuary hoppy explorer’s trail, Easter games, colouring, quiz, and decorate an egg competition! Wear an Easter bonnet to be in with the chance of winning an extra special prize!
A great family day out!
Prices Adults – £5.00
Children under 14 – £7.50
Please remember to wear outdoor footwear as it is a farm! They will have tea and coffee available throughout the event.
To book visit – https://www.thefarmanimalsanctuary.co.uk/hoppy-trail
Till next time