The Coronavirus pandemic has meant massive changes for all of us. We have all been restricted by the lockdown and unable to do the things we usually do.
For vibrant and active women like the Bridgend Soroptimists this has been very frustrating. So when the call went out from local hospital staff to make cloth bags tied with a drawstring for nurses to use to take home and launder their used uniforms after a hospital shift, our members rallied.
Soroptimist Creativity At Work
Having found out that old pillowcases, duvet covers and bedsheets provide the perfect materials for the bags, an appeal amongst members resulted in a mass of fabric. A team of four Soroptimists with nimble fingers – Carys, Anne H., Margaret A. and Venetia – set to work and quickly produced 55 scrubs bags.
Margaret gave her bags an additional flourish. She used an old duvet cover from her grandchildren and carefully cut out the angels and stitched them to the front of the bags.
Now we were faced with the task of getting the bags to the people who needed them. Club President, Sharon Dixon, rose to the challenge and collected the bags from our sewing members and delivered them to staff in the hospitals. Here is Debra Rumph from the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend taking delivery.
Sharon said, “I had the immense pleasure of collecting 55 Scrubs bags from our lovely ladies, maintaining social distancing at all times, of course. I then delivered 45 bags to the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend and 10 to Felindre Hospital in Cardiff. They were very much appreciated. Well done SI Bridgend, a fantastic effort!”
Angel Bags For NHS Angels
The bags were delivered to Debra Rumph, Patient Advisory Liaison Officer and the Princess of Wales Hospital. Debra said, “I just have to say the scrubs bags were a massive hit with the nurses! They especially loved the ones with angels on – a massive thank you for taking the time to make these bags.
I’m going to be really cheeky and ask if the ladies could make us some more – particularly the “angel ones” – the girls really loved these!”
Sharon said, “This is a fantastic effort by members and a small thank you to our dedicated NHS staff. Who would have thought you could transform unwanted bedding into something so useful! The bags were such a huge hit, especially the ones with the angels on, so the work goes on!”
Help Bridgend Soroptimists Make a Difference
If you would like to make a difference to the lives of women and girls, both locally and globally, then please contact Bridgend Soroptimists via our Facebook page or email us at sibridgendsecretary@gmail.com and we’ll be happy to provide you with further information.