A Saturday shift that helps care continue

A charity shop is a useful meeting place for two things a community often has in different houses: goods somebody no longer needs and time somebody is willing to give.

East Rand Palliative Care is looking for volunteers for its Kempton Park charity shop. An appeal published by Kempton Express on 8 September includes help with sorting donations, arranging stock and serving customers. Saturday assistance forms part of the need.

The money raised supports the organisation's work with patients and families. Behind the clothes rail and the shelf of household goods is care that has to continue through ordinary weeks, whether a fundraising event is on the calendar or not.

For someone considering a shift, the sensible first step is a conversation with the shop. Ask which days need help, whether lifting is involved, how new volunteers learn the till and what happens if you cannot attend. An arrangement that fits your health and available time has a better chance of lasting.

Donations need a little thought too. Clean, complete, usable items can move onto a shelf. Broken appliances and bags of unusable clothing create disposal work. Checking before delivering a large item saves everyone a difficult afternoon.

There is pleasure in this sort of work beyond the money it raises: finding the right jacket for a customer, giving a good object another useful life, getting to know the person on the next shift. To enquire, use the contact details in the local appeal linked below.

www.thepeoplesa.com