Charlotte's Xmas Diary: reflections

Overall the shelter was nothing how I had expected. The guests were so friendly and so grateful for our help and all the volunteers were amazing. I met some great friends who I am still in contact with now and will hopefully see again next Christmas at the shelter. The shelter hit me quite emotionally and now every time I am moaning that its cold or I am hungry I think about the people on the streets and realise I am very lucky. People are homeless for many different reasons and it is not fair to judge people when you do not know their circumstances.

I was also really happy to see that some of the guests were not homeless but came to the shelter for company and I am glad that we made their Christmas fun and that they were not alone. This Christmas although very very hard work has been my best Christmas yet and has changed my Christmas forever because now I am definitely going to volunteer every year if possible. If anybody said to me that they were thinking of volunteering I would definitely tell them to go for it, it is such a rewarding experience and you will get to meet so many nice people. People volunteer for different reasons some for religion, some for university and some just because they like to help but everyone has the same goal and that is to make the shelter a success. The trustees of the shelter are so inspirational and put so much effort into the shelter.

Charlotte's Xmas Diary: Christmas Eve

I was a bit nervous walking to the shelter today because it was the first time I would get to meet the guests. When I arrived I signed in and found somebody in a yellow shirt. All the volunteers were given red shirts, the trustees had blue shirts and volunteers who were more experienced and who volunteer every year have yellow shirts and help to run the shelter. The yellow shirt lady told me that everything was in control at the moment and so I should just mingle with the guests and get to know some.

I sat down at a table with two guys in their late twenties. They were very polite to me but a little shy. One of them left after a while to use the computers and the other man started to talk to me a little more. He explained he had moved to England 2 years ago and after his first year his visa had expired and so now he was living on the streets. He was extremely intelligent and every time I saw him later in the day he always had his head stuck in a book.

Then it was time to serve lunch to the guests, I helped to serve the food, which was either a choice of cottage pie or vegetarian pasta bake. The guests loved the food and after we had tidied up the room the volunteers also got to eat. The food was cooked by professional chefs who also volunteer and it was so yummy =)

Next I worked on the coffee bar serving the guests hot drinks, this was very busy. It surprised me at how much they ate straight after lunch! Then I got to sit down and talk to a few more guests. this time the guests I met were not homeless but had come to the shelter because they live on their own and they do not want to be alone at Christmas. They were also very intelligent and one of them came from Algeria so he was helping me with my Arabic! I helped to set up a game of Monopoly for them and then I helped the volunteers to arrange a game of Bingo. The guests loved this and it was their chance to win things such as shower gel and chocolates.

I was sad to leave at 5 because I was having a lot of fun at the shelter and had met some really nice people. It was so nice to see all the things that the shelter was offering to the guests. As well as warmth and hot food, there were showers running all-day, access to the internet, books, a chiropodist, a dentist, a GP, the Samaritans, a barber. There were also people arriving throughout the day to entertain the guests, some children put on a pantomime, a man played the guitar and some girls played the violin and flute.

Charlotte's Xmas Diary: set-up day

As I am walking to the shelter this morning it is absolutely freezing and I share a thought to the half a million people in Britain who would have been sleeping on the streets or in doorways last night. I get to the shelter early and meet a girl called Suki, we immediately get on and spend most of the morning working together, and it is so nice that everyone is so friendly.

Firstly we moved all the donated food into the kitchen, there is so much that I feel overwhelmed at how generous people are. We then have to check every tin and packet to make sure they are in date. Thus turned into a bit of a game and we were excited when we found the odd thing out of date, some even went back to 2001...oh dear! Then we help to lay out the chairs and tables in the main room where the guests will have entertainment, sandwiches and drinks. Next Suki and I and two more of my new friends are asked to help sort donated clothing into men’s and women’s and take the toiletries to the showers. Everybody is in such a nice happy mood; one man wouldn’t even stop singing!! All of us then help to clean the mattresses ready for the room where the guests will be sleeping and the shelter is starting to look nearly ready now.

I am sad to learn I will not be working with Suki or my other new friends on my other shifts but I am still very excited because everybody is so nice. The shelter opens its doors tomorrow and my next shift is Christmas Eve!!

Charlotte's Xmas Diary: induction

I was a bit nervous before arriving at the shelter today because I didn’t know what kind of people to expect. After taking a while to find the shelter I arrive and meet two of the trustees who are very nice to me and guide me into a room full of people. They very kindly provided tea and coffee, oh and also biscuits =) as I am pouring a drink a lady comes to talk to me. She explains that she volunteered with the shelter last year and has been made a supervisor this year which she is looking forward to. She is very friendly and gives me lots of tips and advice.

Next we sit down to listen to some of the trustees explain to us our role and what will happen throughout the week. Everybody who works for the shelter is a volunteer from the trustees to the chefs. They explain how there will be lots of different roles from helping to peel the vegetables and prepare the food, serving the food, tidying up, escorting people to the toilets and showers and providing them with entertainment. It all sounds very exciting and I cannot wait to start. All the trustees work very hard and they are all so inspiring. The main message delivered in this meeting was that we are not trying to change the world in a week; however we want to make this week as comfortable as possible for the homeless and other guests, with shelter and food. I was so happy to meet other people, like me who were so willing to help. Everybody was so friendly and I cannot wait to get involved on Tuesday.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnuSeIej0ho

Recycling at Birmingham Christmas Shelter 2009

We have received the following information from our ace-recycler, Ted, at BCS 2009.

"Apparently more consumables were ordered than previously.

Weren't the meals wonderful?! :)

Especially as they were produced by different chefs and volunteers on different days; excepting Roy's consistency and Yvonne's

BUT WHAT GOES IN MUST ...

A maxi-bin was delivered, a number of green wheeled bins arrived (mixed recycling accepted). Paper and card baled or bagged.

Even the most careful management would not prevent some cooked food waste, bound for the maxi-bin.

Mr Phil Brook of Birmingham Waste Department appreciates our project and our management of "waste".

STATISTICS

The maxi-bin - blacks sacks containing cooked food waste; non-recycle-able plastic wrapping; mixed material items e.g. cardboard container with metal base and rim; and the three nasties - black plastic and polystyrene and tetra paks; and grot. Not filled beyond level. Hooray!

10 wheeled bins mixed recycling metal and foil and plastics

2.5 bins separated green, brown, clear glass

3 dozen bales/bags card and paper (and old clothes)

12 half bags of compostable raw food

:( I am still unhappy at so many black sax.

During this year new legislation may appear to regulate container producers :)

My thanks to a few occaisional helpers without whom, etc. I "collapsed" on the 30th as, I expect, did many of you.

WELL DONE ALL.

BEST WISHES JAMIE."

A huge thank you to our volunteers

This is just a quick note to say thank you to all our amazing volunteers. The Trustees believe that this was a wonderful Shelter, with our new services, especially IT and Samaritans, working really well because of the energy and commitment of our volunteers.

One of our guests left us a letter of thanks that said:

"On behalf of all of us. To Birmingham Christmas Shelter. To all Trustees, Volunteers and Security Staff. On behalf of all the Homeless, Vulnerable, lonely people. We would all like to say a sincere thank you for all your hard work, dedication, patience and kindness for all you have done to make our Christmas a better experience.

"Most of us have had serious problems in our lives and we really do appreciate everything. We would also like to thank those people who have donated food etc. to this charity.

" To Jamie a big thank you from the bottom of our hearts for all your hard work. We wish you the best.

"This is from all of us."

In the next few days we will be uploading some videos to our Youtube channel and we will be blogging about the Shelter. In the meantime, the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Michael Wilkes, has blogged about his alternative Christmas, including a visit to our Shelter.

Videos of our Christmas Shelter for 2008 are on-line at our Birmingham Christmas Shelter YouTube channel. You can also see some photos from the Lord Mayor's visit on our Birmingham Christmas Shelter Flickr site.