Good causes in the region are in for a massive boost with over 1100 hours of volunteering time donated to charities following the success of The Kinder Shop in Carlisle and Kendal last week.
The shop offered people the chance to pay for luxury items with kindness – by volunteering a suggested number of hours at a local charity.
Garden furniture, hampers, toys and children’s bikes could all be ‘bought’ by people pledging to put some graft in to support local groups.
The event caused quite a stir last week and now charities can look forward to some much needed extra support over the summer, much of it from people who have not been involved in volunteering before.
So, Cumbria Deaf Association will gain 89 hours of help, for example, which will include offering deaf awareness courses to volunteers.
And, 132 hours have been pledged to Eden Valley Hospice to marshall their torchlight procession to the cathedral for Carlisle’s city of lights in October.
Oak Tree Animals’ Charity will benefit from over 200 hours of volunteer support with their summer fair and helping to clean and maintain their animal shelter.
Other charities taking part included West Cumbria Hospice at Home, Shelter, the British Heart Foundation and Anti Racist Cumbria.
Caroline Howsley, general manager of Cumbria Deaf Association, was delighted to gain some new volunteers – a welcome boost for the charity which has been knocked recently by a burglary and vandalism at its offices.
“It is harder these days to find volunteers because everyone feels so short of time. So, to have something like The Kinder Shop really encourages people to come and look at different ways of volunteering and it means they are getting something back for their time,” she said.
The shop was also visited by Carlisle mayor, Mike Mitchelson, who praised the project. “Anything that highlights local charities and encourages more people to get involved with volunteering has to be a good thing. I think it is an excellent idea,” he said.
His wife, Anne, ‘bought’ items including a novelty duck doorstop and will be paying for them by volunteering at Oak Tree.
The purpose of The Kinder Shop is to show what a difference kindness can make in communities.
The Cumberland Building Society is funding the project as part of its campaign to promote kindness.
Phil Ward, brand manager with The Cumberland, said: “It has been humbling to see how people have responded to this idea and given their time so generously.
“We wanted to show what a difference kindness can make in the community and the people of Carlisle have responded magnificently.”