Sharing Thanks with the Guideposts Team
We would like to end the year by thanking the wonderful Guideposts teams who have worked tirelessly throughout this, another challenging year.
When we asked for nominations for our annual awards, we received many wonderful testimonies. They really illustrate the lengths that so many have gone to, to support people in our community, and how each person in the team is valued. Here are just a few of them.
Day Services
“Julie is incredibly hard working very empathetic and understanding and an awesome support worker that service users and staff love to be around.”
“Dawn has also worked hard to reassure those families that were wary of sending their loved ones back after lockdown by communicating with them and arranging for those people to attend on days where they would be in the smallest groups. … Although we have been short staffed, if any of our service users or their families can be supported with some extra help then Dawn will do her best to try and organise it not just for the benefit of our service users but to support their family too.”
“Jane has continuously stepped up to support Guideposts and service users during tough times, staff shortages and juggling personal health issues and her work load with amazing commitment and perseverance.”
“Vicki always comes up with great ideas for services users to have fun with, super creative and is amazing with guideposts social media.”
Providing Remote support
“To witness the joy and support and care that Lin and Jane provide in their Zoom sessions to the people they work with, and beyond, has been one of the best things during lockdown. They have positively impacted all of our beneficiaries, from carers, to mental health, as well as staff!”
“The trust that Dave has gained extends to the service users’ parents and support staff, they are extremely grateful and have been overwhelmed by the care and attention he provides as they didn’t realise that the service extends to the wellbeing of not only the clients but also their families. They absolutely love having chats with him because it provides a small amount of respite and relief.”
Extraordinary support
“Carole has worked with our service users tirelessly over the last couple of months in terms of their Benefit applications, PIP and EAS assessments. … This is an extremely trying time for the service users as the unknown and the process creates anxiety for them. Carole has spent many weekends of her own time completing applications and forms, supporting the service users’ mental health throughout the process, and she has been very successful with the applications.”
“Clare has continued to work for Guideposts since her resignation in January in order to support Stroud Hub team while they have been without a manager. Clare has gone into the hub at weekends to decorate and other repairs etc. and has worked extremely hard despite having her own businesses to run.”
“Justine is always happy and leads from the front, supports her team, and is great at problem solving and multi-tasking and juggling roles.”
“The work Avril does researching, training, managing of staff, project management, tendering and applying for grants, has greatly enhanced the service we offer. This has really made a difference to people’s lives when they’ve literally had nowhere else to turn. … She is not only a supervisor but a mentor, that is rare and her staff cherish this as confidence within our team has flourished as a result. “
“The Stroud Community Hub Team is a shining example of what can be achieved when everyone goes the extra mile and supports each other and no single person could do it without the support and camaraderie of the others.
Each team member, whatever their role, has shown incredible resilience, commitment and support to their team colleagues through extremely challenging times. They have supported each other, and service users and their families, through Covid lockdown, loss of social contact and enforced isolation, illnesses and anxiety, loss of staff including their team coordinator amongst other things.
They have worked together supporting each other to find ways to stay positive and motivated, and to get the Hub and activities back on its feet and growing with new Hub members joining, while continuing to meet challenges of all kinds.”
Ambassadors and Volunteers
“Julian has been an incredible Guideposts Ambassador walking over 1000 miles on the Global Challenge and raising over £1100. He has also raised awareness for Guideposts through his work and been a great ambassador speaking about his experience for radio and newspaper features.”
“Simon Oliver, Ron Spurs and Windrush Radio have given all year to continually support our Guideposts Community with weekly music, entertainment and shout outs keeping people connected. Simon also worked really hard during the Witney Music festival event and he even does all those odd jobs that we need doing too!”
“Linda and Steve have been (and continue to be) befrienders to some of our clients who have needed a lot of support and have quite complex mental health issues. They have also donated items for sale, for the centre and for a client in need. They have given so much time to our service, whilst also being carers for their daughter, who also attends our services.”
“Leah first volunteered for Henry Smith House during the pandemic. She has assisted with various projects relating to our Covid revamp. Her commitment and dedication to her role as a volunteer in supporting any administration functions required as well as supporting service users to conduct on-site LFT tests has been invaluable in keeping us all safe! She joined our staff team in August for 15 hours per week and continues to volunteer for us during her other available hours and days.”
These testimonies barely touch on the lengths that so many have gone to, to support people in our community. There are many more people who were nominated, and even more unsung heroes who deserve thanks.
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