Meet Susie

“I enjoy volunteering within the community and if I can help lift spirits, that’s what I like to do.

During the coronavirus pandemic I shopped for my more vulnerable friends and neighbours, always masked and socially-distanced and doing tons of hand-washing of course. It was as much a benefit to me as to anybody else, to feel I was doing something worthwhile rather than being stuck at home. To be out for more than an hour was a blessing, as was finding so many other people being considerate, helpful and kind. People from all walks of life were working together towards the common goal of making things better, which was uplifting.

I've long been involved with the church and the school, and 29 years ago I helped found the Music Festival Proms at St Jude’s to raise money for the North London Hospice and Toynbee Hall. I also sing in the choir at St Jude’s- it’s a beautiful church and the acoustic is wonderful.

When the pandemic hit, it was a real challenge trying to organise Proms 2020. We had to cancel the live festival, but we put some events online, with free entertainment, education, author talks and music, and Sponsors and Friends still gave generously. Proms 2021 was also very challenging. We managed to host one of the very first live socially-distanced festivals in the country, and raised £60,000 too – as much as we did in 2019! People were so grateful, and the performers were thrilled – you could see the pure joy on their faces.

"Our box office telephone system is free, so we turned it into a trusted community helpline which reached people who needed shopping done, or who had just been bereaved, or who’d slipped through every other net. I also helped as a marshal at the local vaccination clinic, just welcoming and reassuring people, saying 'Hello, come on in!' Some people hadn’t been out of their house since the thing started and were terrified or in tears. Some were just grateful, saying, 'You're all wonderful!' – it was incredibly moving. I struggled with the lockdowns myself, but I'm 100% sure I’d be in a far worse place if I hadn’t been volunteering, if I hadn’t felt that sense of worth and personal fulfilment, of being needed and appreciated. It’s lovely being rewarded with a smile, or a thank you, for just being civil and kind. We must all be kind to each other: just treat others as you would like to be treated yourself, or better.”