Dear Volunteer,
I am writing to update you on some important new developments at Stonepillow and other information on upcoming fundraising events that you may wish to get involved with. As a valued member of our team, we want you to be aware of any changes that are relevant to you so please take the time to read this letter carefully and get back to us with any questions you may have.
Firstly, I wanted to say a big thank you for giving up your time so generously to volunteer with us. Your involvement is absolutely vital to the work we do and is very much appreciated by our staff and service users. I am well aware that, as a part-time volunteer with other commitments, you rarely have the opportunity to participate in meetings related to your role with us. If this is something that would interest you then you are more than welcome to attend our Client Services staff meetings which are held every Wednesday at 4pm at St. Martin’s day centre in Bognor Regis. This is an occasion for you to keep informed on new developments, ask any questions and have your say. If you would like to come along, please contact us in advance so we can save you a seat!
We are always in need of more volunteers and in particular we need volunteer cooks who can help out at mealtimes at St. Joseph’s or either of our day centres. If you know anyone who has the skills to help prepare meals for our service users and who can dedicate a few hours a week to us, please do encourage them to get in touch with us.
Mike Jones’s Retirement
As some of you may already be aware, Mike Jones will be retiring from his position as Stonepillow CEO this July. Having spent over 12 years with us, Mike has overseen the growth of Stonepillow from a night refuge and day centre in Chichester to an organisation offering a variety of different services to support the homeless and vulnerable in the area. Mike already retired temporarily from Stonepillow 3 years ago, but we are so grateful that he returned to guide us through what could have been a difficult few years, particularly in light of the recent economic recession. Stonepillow is now in its strongest ever position thanks to the success of our re-brand in 2008 and the creation of our new furniture re-use project Stonepillow Restore which should provide a sustainable income for our valuable services in years to come.
We wish Mike all the very best in his retirement plans and he will certainly be missed by all of us at Stonepillow.
New Appointments
Martin Lucktaylor has recently been promoted to Stonepillow’s Administrator so he is your contact for any information related to your role. We are currently recruiting an administrative assistant to take the place of his previous role and we hope to have this new person in place within the next few months.
Stonepillow Restore Update
Stonepillow Restore will soon re-open with new staff and a new warehouse! For those of you who aren’t yet aware, Stonepillow Restore is our new furniture re-use project which aims to promote sustainability in the local community by restoring donations of furniture and white goods and selling these at affordable prices to individuals and families on low incomes in the area. This project has social enterprise at its heart, so in addition to being a low-cost furniture shop it will also double as a workshop where volunteers, recruited from our client base, will learn the skills to restore all donated items. Three new staff members have started working on the project this week, and they are; Project Manager Mark Lyons; Administrator Kayleigh Trott and Domestic Appliance Engineer Derek Ockenden. As the very first team dedicated exclusively to this new project, our new recruits have an exciting and challenging time ahead!
We are still in need of community volunteers who can help our volunteers learn the skills of furniture restoration. If you know of anyone who has skills in carpentry or a related trade we would love to hear from them. We are also in constant need of donations of good quality furniture, white goods and electrical items that would be suitable for re-sale to our customers. Instead of taking these to landfill please contact us and we will come and collect directly from your home!
Changes at St. Joe’s
Those of you who volunteer at St. Joe’s will already be aware of the changes we have made to the larder by making this into our new administrative office. We have done our best to reduce the impact of this change on your role with us, and both myself and the admin team are grateful of the support you have shown us. I am pleased to report that moving the office downstairs has had the desired effect of allowing admin staff to be more responsive to visitors and therefore more efficient in their work.
Despite this re-shuffling we are certainly not short on space! As always, we are in need of food and items of clothing for our service users so please do continue to give generously.
Upcoming Fundraising Events
This October 30th we will be holding Stonepillow’s SleepOut and we need your support to raise even more money than ever before. Everyone is welcome to join us and be sponsored for a night sleeping under the stars in the beautiful grounds of Chichester Cathedral and there are lots of activities for all the family to get involved in such as a BBQ and Cardboard Shelter Competition. Please do get involved and encourage your friends and families to do the same; as well as being an enjoyable occasion the Big SleepOut is a key event on our fundraising calendar and we are sure you as eager as we are to see it being a success!
On September 9th, Diva Opera - a very professional London based company - will be hosting an evening of opera in the Chichester Cathedral to raise money for Stonepillow. The event will include a buffet and an auction of promises starting at 6pm in the café, before enjoying a wonderful Opera inside the Cathedral. We are hoping to welcome many VIP supporters of Stonepillow so please look out for our adverts and information coming out soon. We need everyone to support this event and raise awareness of the work we do. Please promote the event as it should be a wonderful evening and we hope to see you all there.
On Sunday 11th July we will also be taking part in Chichester Challenge where staff members will be putting on their trainers and taking part in a sponsored walk. If you would like to join in the walk or even just sponsor those that are participating, please do get in touch! I’ll be wearing my trainers!!
Remember to check our website www.stonepillow.org.uk as we will update it regularly with news items on fundraising and other information relevant to you. In the meantime, if you would like to get involved in any of the events above or if you have any fundraising ideas of your own we would love to hear from you. Please call Martin on 01243 537934 or e-mail mlucktaylor@stonepillow.org.uk.
Finally, thank you once again for your ongoing hard work and dedication. Your support really does make a difference to the work we do with the homeless and vulnerable in the local community.
With Best Wishes,
Sylvie Johnston
Stonepillow Director of Operations
I am writing to update you on some important new developments at Stonepillow and other information on upcoming fundraising events that you may wish to get involved with. As a valued member of our team, we want you to be aware of any changes that are relevant to you so please take the time to read this letter carefully and get back to us with any questions you may have.
Firstly, I wanted to say a big thank you for giving up your time so generously to volunteer with us. Your involvement is absolutely vital to the work we do and is very much appreciated by our staff and service users. I am well aware that, as a part-time volunteer with other commitments, you rarely have the opportunity to participate in meetings related to your role with us. If this is something that would interest you then you are more than welcome to attend our Client Services staff meetings which are held every Wednesday at 4pm at St. Martin’s day centre in Bognor Regis. This is an occasion for you to keep informed on new developments, ask any questions and have your say. If you would like to come along, please contact us in advance so we can save you a seat!
We are always in need of more volunteers and in particular we need volunteer cooks who can help out at mealtimes at St. Joseph’s or either of our day centres. If you know anyone who has the skills to help prepare meals for our service users and who can dedicate a few hours a week to us, please do encourage them to get in touch with us.
Mike Jones’s Retirement
As some of you may already be aware, Mike Jones will be retiring from his position as Stonepillow CEO this July. Having spent over 12 years with us, Mike has overseen the growth of Stonepillow from a night refuge and day centre in Chichester to an organisation offering a variety of different services to support the homeless and vulnerable in the area. Mike already retired temporarily from Stonepillow 3 years ago, but we are so grateful that he returned to guide us through what could have been a difficult few years, particularly in light of the recent economic recession. Stonepillow is now in its strongest ever position thanks to the success of our re-brand in 2008 and the creation of our new furniture re-use project Stonepillow Restore which should provide a sustainable income for our valuable services in years to come.
We wish Mike all the very best in his retirement plans and he will certainly be missed by all of us at Stonepillow.
New Appointments
Martin Lucktaylor has recently been promoted to Stonepillow’s Administrator so he is your contact for any information related to your role. We are currently recruiting an administrative assistant to take the place of his previous role and we hope to have this new person in place within the next few months.
Stonepillow Restore Update
Stonepillow Restore will soon re-open with new staff and a new warehouse! For those of you who aren’t yet aware, Stonepillow Restore is our new furniture re-use project which aims to promote sustainability in the local community by restoring donations of furniture and white goods and selling these at affordable prices to individuals and families on low incomes in the area. This project has social enterprise at its heart, so in addition to being a low-cost furniture shop it will also double as a workshop where volunteers, recruited from our client base, will learn the skills to restore all donated items. Three new staff members have started working on the project this week, and they are; Project Manager Mark Lyons; Administrator Kayleigh Trott and Domestic Appliance Engineer Derek Ockenden. As the very first team dedicated exclusively to this new project, our new recruits have an exciting and challenging time ahead!
We are still in need of community volunteers who can help our volunteers learn the skills of furniture restoration. If you know of anyone who has skills in carpentry or a related trade we would love to hear from them. We are also in constant need of donations of good quality furniture, white goods and electrical items that would be suitable for re-sale to our customers. Instead of taking these to landfill please contact us and we will come and collect directly from your home!
Changes at St. Joe’s
Those of you who volunteer at St. Joe’s will already be aware of the changes we have made to the larder by making this into our new administrative office. We have done our best to reduce the impact of this change on your role with us, and both myself and the admin team are grateful of the support you have shown us. I am pleased to report that moving the office downstairs has had the desired effect of allowing admin staff to be more responsive to visitors and therefore more efficient in their work.
Despite this re-shuffling we are certainly not short on space! As always, we are in need of food and items of clothing for our service users so please do continue to give generously.
Upcoming Fundraising Events
This October 30th we will be holding Stonepillow’s SleepOut and we need your support to raise even more money than ever before. Everyone is welcome to join us and be sponsored for a night sleeping under the stars in the beautiful grounds of Chichester Cathedral and there are lots of activities for all the family to get involved in such as a BBQ and Cardboard Shelter Competition. Please do get involved and encourage your friends and families to do the same; as well as being an enjoyable occasion the Big SleepOut is a key event on our fundraising calendar and we are sure you as eager as we are to see it being a success!
On September 9th, Diva Opera - a very professional London based company - will be hosting an evening of opera in the Chichester Cathedral to raise money for Stonepillow. The event will include a buffet and an auction of promises starting at 6pm in the café, before enjoying a wonderful Opera inside the Cathedral. We are hoping to welcome many VIP supporters of Stonepillow so please look out for our adverts and information coming out soon. We need everyone to support this event and raise awareness of the work we do. Please promote the event as it should be a wonderful evening and we hope to see you all there.
On Sunday 11th July we will also be taking part in Chichester Challenge where staff members will be putting on their trainers and taking part in a sponsored walk. If you would like to join in the walk or even just sponsor those that are participating, please do get in touch! I’ll be wearing my trainers!!
Remember to check our website www.stonepillow.org.uk as we will update it regularly with news items on fundraising and other information relevant to you. In the meantime, if you would like to get involved in any of the events above or if you have any fundraising ideas of your own we would love to hear from you. Please call Martin on 01243 537934 or e-mail mlucktaylor@stonepillow.org.uk.
Finally, thank you once again for your ongoing hard work and dedication. Your support really does make a difference to the work we do with the homeless and vulnerable in the local community.
With Best Wishes,
Sylvie Johnston
Stonepillow Director of Operations
