Volunteers’ Week 1st – 7th June is about thanking and celebrating the people who generously give their time, energy and enthusiasm to charities such as ours. Throughout the week we will be highlighting the wonderful contribution our volunteers make and the benefits they bring to Cosgrove.
We wish to thank and pay tribute to a very special volunteer: Dr. Jon Oates, who died last month.
Jon began volunteering with us in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic as a community shopper. He committed wholeheartedly to it, shopping for several people weekly during that worrying time. Vulnerable people, who were shielding relied on our service for their weekly sustenance.
The role required a lot of patience, with strict social distancing rules allowed only a few people into the supermarket at a time, and shoppers had to wait in long lines outside in all kinds of weather. Jon rose to the challenge displaying a calm demeanour that would have served him well during his long medical career as an NHS anaesthetist.
Cosgrove Care relies on fundraising and the goodwill of committed volunteers. During the pandemic we could not host in-person fundraising events, so instead the charity ran afternoon tea deliveries to people’s homes. It was very popular, raising both essential funds and people’s spirits, bringing a little slice of café culture into quiet living rooms. Some shared the afternoon tea fun with friends and family get-togethers on Zoom.
None of this would have been possible had it not been for caring volunteers like Jon, motivated to make a challenging time that little bit brighter. Jon was an active/green traveller, and wherever possible he would cycle rather than drive and did all his afternoon tea deliveries on his cargo bike. Initially we were nervous for the strawberry tarts, would they make it? But there was no need for alarm, Jon is in his usual cool calm and collected way, ensured the strawberry tarts were delivered intact!
Jon continued volunteering, organising and dropping off a weekly shop for a gentleman, supported by Cosgrove. Jon’s help reduced the pressure on our staff within the service and it’s this kind of input from volunteers which makes a big difference, allowing our resources – under ever increasing financial pressures – stretch that bit further.
Jon also volunteered with other charities, and was a champion for Refuweegee Glasgow and An Organ for Glasgow, both important causes to Jon.
– Lauren Jarvis, Volunteer Coordinator.
To find out more about volunteering for Cosgrove Care, please visit the volunteering section of our website.