Volunteers’ Week – Recognising Covid-19 Response and Civic Action

Volunteers’ Week, 1 – 7 June, presents another opportunity to thank all the SERC students and staff, past and present, who went the extra mile in response to the pandemic.  The theme for today, from Volunteer Now - the lead organisation for volunteering in Northern Ireland - is recognition for Covid-19 Response and civic action. 

SERC’s Enterprise and Entrepreneurship team coordinated the collection and distribution PPE to care homes across the South Eastern Region and beyond; our industrial engineers brought 3D printers home so they could continue making shields by running machines to their full capacity; staff, students friends and family members took to stitching masks and scrubs for those working on the front line; we cleared our stores of food for students and families most vulnerable and put our kitchens to use by making nutritional meals and for people in the community with a £1000 grant from Food for Life Get Togethers, which were distributed to older clients and local food banks;  and SERC staff made themselves available, outside the usual work hours, often at weekends, to touch base with students to check they were doing ok and had everything they needed to continue with their courses. 

To date, SERC have been involved in the making and/or collection and distribution of:210 masks; 841 homemade masks, 18,000 gloves, 68 pieces of eye protection, 2490 aprons, 120,690 paper towels and rolls, 400 plastic bed covers, 10 full body protective overalls, 30 containers of anti-bacterial wipes, 12 anti-bacterial hand cleanser, 5 litres of hand sanitiser,150 resuscitation face shields, 8 visors, 2000 rain ponchos (a substitute protective cover), 19 homemade scrub sets and 16 homemade scrub laundry bags. 

Anne Marie, a member of the team at Lisburn Care Home, one of the beneficiaries of SERC’s PPE distribution said, “On behalf of Lisburn Care Home staff and residents, I would like thank SERC very much, for the donations that you have made.  All the masks, goggles, aprons, gloves and all the other items have been received as a precious present in these uncertain and scary times. The fact that members of the public are thinking about us and our residents shows that, if we stay united in these hard times, we will beat this pandemic. I hope we will see each other at the end of this and thank SERC very much for being here for us!”  

Thank you to everyone who has helped and supported the response to Covid-19 It all adds up to a lot of voluntary activity and civic action at its best  #TimeToSayThankYou 

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