SCRUBS FOR EPSOM & ST. HELIER
Debbie Christopher
If someone had told me at the beginning of 2020 that I would form a group with five random people and then co-ordinate a team of sewers numbering over 1000, I’d have laughed, nervously. But it happened.
Our admin team gelled over early morning and late night texts. We planned, we formalised, we set up a transport group to coordinate collections and deliveries and we devised an Excel spreadsheet that didn’t let us down. My home became a delivery depot; our dining room became a sorting office for gowns and scrub hats, a spare measuring table was added to make sizing and folding easier and the garage became a warehouse for coloured bedding.
There were meters of Velcro everywhere ! Bedding and donated materials were washed on an industrial scale at the local fire station, making sure that the volunteers were receiving materials that were as clean and risk free as possible. The repeated callers for pick ups and deliveries to my doorstep provided daily interest for my neighbours. There were times that the whole project felt overwhelming - I was taking orders for gowns for hospices, care homes and hospitals which were needed urgently. I was working from home during the day, juggling orders, deliveries and technical support. Each of us in admin had a role and when it got tough for one, the others would rally round with support and humour.
Our volunteers and those courageous people we delivered the scrubs and gowns to had their own stories and it was a privilege to meet them and be part of history.
