Jo has been volunteering for the Thursday Soup Run since 1997 and it is very much part of her “weekly routine”.

Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic we have had to suspend the Soup Run to meet government guidelines and keep our clients, volunteers and staff as safe as possible.  We recently asked Jo what she was missing about her usual volunteering role.

“I really miss catching up with the people who regularly go along to the soup run. Finding out how their week is going and being able to chat whilst providing some refreshments. There were occasionally special moments when the soup run clients, knowing that we are part of a church, would discuss spiritual matters or request our prayers”.

“I also miss the team of volunteers as there is a real sense of camaraderie between us all. It’s a time when each of us steps away from our usual environments to focus on serving others”.

We asked Jo what she has been doing to keep busy during the lockdown.

“I work as a community midwife in the NHS so my experience of lockdown has been different to that of most people as babies keep coming along regardless of COVID-19! Now we seem to be busier and there’s much more PPE in use.  I’ve also had 2 members of my family staying with me so my home life is different too. More time for reflection which has been good and lots of Zoom meetings. On Thursdays around the time we used to be packing up at the soup run we are instead joining everybody else in clapping for the NHS & frontline staff”.