Christmas gift bags for The Orchards
The Orchards is a Unit at St James Hospital Portsmouth which has two wards, Maple (a locked ward for the very ill) and Hawthorn (for those in recovery).
For more than 20 years Thelma Turner-Hill has supported this unit with her Compass Carers' Support Group (families and friends) of those with mental health illness.
She is chairperson of this group, driven by her own experience of her late son, Lloyd, who had schizophrenia and was admitted there many times. She has also worked at the Portsmouth Carers Centre for many years, supporting carers, including chairing the Carers Council (representation)
Thelma and the group, all year, take up bags of goodies and necessary items (toiletries/clothes etc) but at Christmas “go to town” with many gifts.
Thelma is glad to say that for the past few weeks her sun lounge looked like Santa's grotto. With the help of a carer friend, Nick, Thelma filled huge bags with lovely gifts for those dear ill people in The Orchards.
This year has been wonderful, with donations from Southsea Castle Rotary Club, the Lord Mayor’s Community Fund and League of Friends' at St Mary's Hospital, and as always, the lovely Karen from Tescos. Thelma was also happy to receive gifts from the new owners of properties built at St James (lovely), and many carers and friends who showed their love and donated a fabulous response this year!
The bags were filled with useful gifts but Thelma and her friends also provided a Christmas table on each ward with choccies, biscuits, flowers, magazines, Christmas puzzles etc
Thelma and co are so happy to do this for these dear people on The Orchards: mental illness is not given much sympathy and understanding, and some of the patients have no family or friends, a really sad thing having mental health problems in life.
So, at this time of the year, Thelma and friends are glad to be able to give these dear people a little happiness.
Thank goodness for people like Thelma