February 2020
Celebrating 148 years of service!
February has been a busy month for our band of awesome Angels. As well as serving the communities of Guildford in our various roles, we had an opportunity to reflect on how we can look after each other at the training and development day held at St Nicholas Church on Saturday 8 February. Three workshop sessions allowed delegates to explore mindfulness and dealing with stress, whilst another workshop looked at ‘Goals in life, do we need them? Why is it hard to stick to them?’ Chaplain Noelle Coe and Co-ordinator Fiona Ford ran a workshop exploring real life issues we are faced with when out volunteering.
It was also an opportunity to see our new range of equipment, including waterproof back packs, new Beanie hats for those cold nights out and Street Angel umbrellas so useful on those damper evenings. However the highlight of the day was when 27 Angels received long service awards, who between them had clocked up 148 years service on the streets of Guildford! The Angels whose service ranged between three and ten years, were given certificates of appreciation by Chair of GTCC Trustees Chris Britton.
A further training and support session was held the following Tuesday at the kind invitation of Guildford Borough Council. The ‘Faith Forum on Homelessness’ brought representatives from GBC housing, Real Change, Police, HOST, Councillors, local GP’s and voluntary groups such as ourselves together, to hear about what is being done for the homeless. The aim was to raise awareness of what is available in ways of help, to share information about all the initiatives that are currently happening, plus identify where the gaps are. The Council chambers were packed and our Chaplain Noelle chaired the evening, which was beneficial to many of those able to attend.
