Last December, the Mersey Valley Group was given a grant of £3,000 by the Province of West Lancashire to be donated to foodbanks within the footprint of the group. The group chairman, Dave Atkinson, wishing to ensure fairness in the donations, sought to highlight one foodbank closely associated with each hall.
The following 5 were agreed upon and a cheque for £600 was delivered to each foodbank on behalf of the Mersey Valley Group. The foodbanks agreed upon were; Garston Children’s Centre, St Helens Foodbank, Knowsley Foodbank, Widnes Foodbank and South Liverpool Foodbank, Garston.
There was also a donation from Garston Masonic Hall of £200 from Mal Yates the Garston Masonic Hall Chairman to Garston Children’s Centre who provide fun activities for children, their parents and carers.
The initial wish was to have the cheques delivered in time for pre-Christmas clearance and expenditure. Unfortunately, for several administrative reasons this never happened, although from information given by many of the managers, it seems January is always a lean time for donations and the monies would be even more appreciated post the festive period.
All of the managers offered assurances that the monies would be used to re-stock staple food and sanitary items necessary for recipients who really appreciate the support given.