Jenny was my next volunteer for my Lockdown Heroes project. Read her story below –
Jenny Vertigan
I was born in Wokingham
Now live in Woodley
I have 2 occupations. I work full time for a charity supporting people living with early onset dementia, Younger People with Dementia Berkshire. And I am food bank coordinator for The Woodley Pilot Light Trust.
The pandemic has effected my family hugely. For me, it has meant working from home juggling both jobs, plus 2 kids to keep safe. My husband owns a fitness studio which has had to close and he is working as a full time reservist for armed forces. I couldn’t bring myself to send the kids to school as keyworker children so we have been trying to fit them into our schedule.
They are safe at home but I’ve had huge bouts of mum guilt as homeschooling has taken a back seat.
If I were PM I would have put money into the charities sector more substantially. At the food bank we are receiving a huge number of boxes of food that have been sent out to people who were asked to shield. It turns out they didn’t need the provision in alot of cases. So this seems to have been a waste of resources. The Gov could have gone to the charities who are already set up to provide these kind of services and directed those in need in this direction. But I have hindsight on my side!
I think we will see changes across the world following the pandemic. It won’t be the significant ones for climate change and the like I don’t think. But lots of little things will hopefully improve. We could have friendlier neighbourhoods, more willingness to understand how others live, more appreciation for the finer things in life. People have shown that when they have been forced to stop working, they haven’t just become idle. They have offered to help others, they have been generous with their time, money and belongings, they have got fit, finished DIY projects. Just made good use of the unexpected time on their hands.
And for those who have found things hard, the freedom of stepping back out into life again will come with a new appreciation too. I think the world will change for sure but the changes will take time as we recover.
Hope that’s all ok.
Best wishes,
Jenny