Tea With The SVP, which runs from 19-23 April and coincides with National Tea Day on 21 April, invites the nation to enjoy a cuppa while raising funds for the SVP’s Covid Recovery Programme and its regional Community Support Projects. Donations to the Covid Recovery Programme throughout the week will be matched up to a total of £5,000 by a corporate benefactor.
The week of exciting celebrations also includes the birthday of our founder Blessed Frédéric Ozanam (our birthday!) and the organisation’s patron Saint Vincent de Paul, who was born on 24 April 1581
The highlights of the week are two public virtual events featuring SVP patrons, ITN newscaster Julie Etchingham and critically acclaimed screenwriter and author Frank Cottrell-Boyce, at which SVP members, volunteers and the wider public can enjoy a cup of tea and a chat with the two leading personalities.
Join Julie for a cuppa and a chat on Wednesday 21st April at 10:45am BST:
Join Frank Cottrell-Boyce for a cuppa on Friday 23rd April at 2:45pm BST:
Can't make it?
- Have a social distanced tea party - download resources
- Any donation makes a difference to someone in need
The Tea With The SVP week is a welcome milestone in the nation’s path out of national lockdown - the power of a chat over a cuppa should not be underestimated. Making time and listening to people in need is at the core of what the SVP does - it starts with a chat. We all need and deserve the chance to reconnect with friends and loved ones after the year we have just had.
- Helen O'Shea, SVP National President
Pamela is one of the lovely ladies regularly visited by the volunteers of the Dementia Befriending Programme run by St Vincent’s Southend-on-Sea. She hasn’t been out of her house since her husband died last year and is now frightened to go out.
“We talk regularly on the phone, and she proudly talks about her life and how she managed several restaurants in the town. She loves cake, but she isn’t able to cook now, so she really appreciates it when we deliver a homemade piece of cake,” says one of the dedicated team of Dementia Befriending Programme volunteers.
For people like Pamela, loss of human interaction is one of the most serious problems facing older people in lockdown. As a grassroots organisation, the SVP has always seen befriending as one of the most important things we, as Vincentians, can do for someone who needs our help. It demonstrates unity, kindness and compassion. Simple acts of kindness such as a chat over the phone, delivering a puzzle book, a jigsaw, some craft materials, or, like Pamela, a piece of cake, make a huge difference to their lives.
