This week is #VolunteersWeek2023. 2023 is a special year for Footprints in the Community, as it marks our 10 years as a registered charity. Without our dedicated volunteers we could not have supported so many people over the past decade, to help reduce poverty and isolation in the Redcar area.
For Volunteers Week, we’ve been sharing some stories on our Facebook page from our volunteers who have been with us since the very beginning. This is Alan’s story.
Alan has volunteered with foodbank for the past ten years. He was already involved in running a coffee morning at St George’s Church in Normanby on a Friday morning, when church leaders suggested opening a foodbank centre. Alan volunteered right from the start at this new foodbank centre at St George’s, then only six months later took on the role as a Team leader at East Cleveland Baptist Church (now Redcar Baptist Church). Approximately five years ago, Alan then took on the role of Team Leader at St George’s foodbank centre.
“I like meeting and talking to people” says Alan. “It’s an opportunity for me to help and an expression of my Christian faith. That’s really important to me.”
During May 2023, the centre at Redcar Baptist Church moved to the United Reformed Church on Station Road. Alan thinks that this central Redcar location will enable his team to help even more people in need. “While there’s a need, I want to help fill it” he says and that’s what keeps Alan volunteering into 2023 and beyond.
