Meet the volunteers and staff working on Christmas Day to help others celebrate
Meet the support workers, kitchen staff and maintenance workers who are giving up their Christmas Day to help others.
When you sit down for your festive dinner, spare a thought for workers like Sam Ellis, 28, who will be helping to look after elderly residents at The Coppice, an extra care scheme for the over 55s in Shrewsbury which is operated by the Wrekin Housing Group.
Sam is a Customer Service Assistant. He would normally be spending Christmas with his family in Wolverhampton, but will this year be working the morning shift on Christmas Day.
Sam said: “Christmas is a very different day here. It’s a very nice place to be because everyone is happy, everyone comes down with a smile on their face. There’s a good atmosphere in the café.
“There are some people here with dementia who struggle to remember faces - but no one forgets Christmas.
“It’s an opportunity to get everyone together, pull some crackers and sing some songs. Our main role that day is to give people that little nudge to get them to join in. When they do their eyes light up and they walk out of here with a beaming smile and that’s rewarding.”
Judith Hughes, 61, is also a Customer Service Assistant at The Coppice and is looking forward to getting everyone together.
She said: “This is going to be quite a nice Christmas Day for me because I’m usually on my own.
“It’s everyone’s Christmas. It’s a perfect situation to get people together so that no one is sitting on their own. There are some who are new or don’t usually get involved and those are the ones you encourage to join in.
“You go home feeling like you’ve done something. Someone might be feeling unwell, or a bit sad or missing family and you can just sit with them, chat and have a cup of tea. You do feel like you’ve achieved something.”
David Williams, 46 is the Service Manager at Oakwood in Wellington and will spend the day serving meals and keeping people company.
David said: “A lot of our tenants will spend Christmas Day with their friends and family, but we are here for the people who aren’t able to spend the day with their loved ones. There is a really nice atmosphere and people really appreciate what we do for them.
“A big focus is dinner – making sure everybody has what they need and keeping them company. My Christmas day will happen on Boxing Day when I go to visit my family. “
Other members of staff working on Christmas Day include Chef Manager Jack Standley, 26 and Catering Assistant Dylan Haddock, 21, who will be helping to prepare the Christmas Dinner for residents and staff at Oakwood and Springwood ShireLiving Schemes.
Jack said: “It’s my first Christmas here at Oakwood and I’m looking forward to it. I’ve been a chef at other places so Christmas Day is always a busy time. It’s not only about cooking the dinner; it’s about making sure everyone has a nice experience as well.
“We’ll start a lot of the prep on Christmas Eve and make sure everything is good to go on the big day. The customers here are not shy when it comes to telling you what they like and what they don’t like.
“If I wasn’t working and I would be spending it with my family. I’ve just moved in with my girlfriend but she’s very understanding. We’ll make sure we all have a good time on Boxing Day.”
Dylan said: “I usually work over Christmas, and I don’t mind - seeing all of the residents having a good time makes it all worthwhile. Everyone comes around one big table and has a chat with one another – there’s a real community feel to the day.”
Several Wrekin staff will also be on hand to help in the event of emergencies – including Advanced Craft Plumber David Moore, 51. This will be the fifth year in a row David will have worked on Christmas Day – having been called out on several occasions to carry out emergency repairs.
David said: “I’ve been called out on a few occasions to help people over Christmas and people are genuinely grateful to see us. In the past I’ve been out because of burst pipes and blocked drains.
"People are very apologetic for calling you out and they will offer you a brew and a mince pie. Once my shift is finished, I will spend the day with my wife, the grandkids and the mother-in-law.
“It also gets me out of cooking duty as well so it’s not all that bad!”
