In the summer some of our Lighthouse Pantry team, Donna, Sue and Carl, were invited to a ‘Gamechangers’ celebration event held on the Coronation Street TV set. The event was a thank you, and an acknowledgement of the great work that many community projects do week-in and week-out. The Lighthouse Pantry was one of those chosen by the Co-op to be acknowledged as local gamechangers.
Local gamechangers bring people together to tackle big issues Co-op members and their communities care about. They work to make communities a little bit fairer for everyone, whether this is through bringing their community together, spending time volunteering or by choosing a local cause to support.
Here is Donna’s story. Read on to find out about the work she does, how she got started, and her advice for those who are interested in volunteering.
Donna
Donna works at the Lighthouse Pantry, one of our linked membership-based pantries in Middleton.
The Pantry was set up in December 2018 to help local families and individuals reduce their weekly food costs, so they could have more money in their household to cover other bills or needs. Since then it has been running several sessions every week, which recently topped 250 sessions.
What’s a typical day like at the Lighthouse Pantry?
A typical day starts around 7:30am when I collect the donations from a local food business for our food pantry. Then, we get the building ready for the day, making sure it’s clean and tidy, and well stocked ready for our members when we open at 9:30am.
The Pantry is open for 3 hours on a Tuesday, Thursday and Friday morning. We also have our café in the Lighthouse Project which is open every day and we have a number of social activities, booked sessions and appointments, so it’s full steam ahead each day!
Plus, we have other deliveries or donations throughout the day which need to be received and put out into our pantry. There’s a lot to do so the day goes by really fast.
Why is it important for you to help others in your community?
It’s really important to help our community and offer a one-stop shop for people so they’re not lost in the system attending numerous appointments all over the borough.
As a bigger community hub we have pretty much everything under one roof and are able to signpost to other services within the centre, such as debt management, social groups, computer courses and cooking classes if need be, so no one ever leaves us without their issue or question being unanswered or sorted.
We all live in the Middleton area, so we understand the issues many face, and a lot of us have had our own experiences which means we’re well equipped to deal with many things.
How has volunteering made an impact on your life?
Volunteering was something I always wanted to do, but with full-time work, I never had time to commit to it. When my circumstances changed after the loss of my mum, my dad and my uncle within a year, I found myself lost and in a bad place.
They asked me to volunteer at the Lighthouse and this changed my life and my whole perspective. It was an absolute lifesaver for me and gave me a purpose after a great loss in my life. I was able to be around people who supported me and kept me going through a really difficult time.
From volunteering, I applied for a full-time role at the Lighthouse Project. I’ve worked for the police, the NHS and the council, and I can honestly say that I’ve never been happier in a job. My role here is so rewarding and very humbling on a daily basis. I feel truly blessed to be a part of the Lighthouse Project and its amazing family of staff, volunteers, and visitors.
Thank you to the Co-op for inviting us to the Gamechangers event at the Coronation Street Studios, it was a great privilege, and we appreciate the acknowledgement and support given to our community work.
