More fanciful fundraising
Congratulations to the team at Gosforth Delivery Office in Newcastle, who have raised more than £2,600 for the NHS by digging out their best fancy-dress outfits to do their deliveries in costume.
Princesses, superheroes, and even a postbox have been spotted delivering post to homes in Gosforth, Fawdon and Wideopen.
Postman Gareth Evans, who organised the fundraiser, said: ‘Some streets have WhatsApp groups and they’ve been messaging the neighbours when they spot us to say that we’re on our way so they can wave at the window – it’s been received really well.’
Gareth originally planned to dress up for his shift for just one day to receive sponsors from his colleagues, in the hope of reaching a fundraising target of £100. But following the fantastic reaction from both colleagues and customers, Gareth decided to continue showing up for his shift in fancy dress, costumes his wife had accumulated for hen parties over a number of years, including dresses and hairbands.
‘I’ve been delivering post dressed as a lady a few times now,’ he said. ‘Those outfits tend to receive a lot of toots from people passing in vans and cars as I walk down the Great North Road in Gosforth!’
When 15 of Gareth’s colleagues decided to also get involved, the team saw a huge spike in donations from the community. One street, where Gareth delivers post regularly, also decided to show their appreciation by clapping from their doorstep when he entered the street.
‘It was amazing to see people clapping for me as I was doing my rounds,’ said Gareth. ‘I felt like crying when I was walking through the street –it was lovely to see. We’re living through difficult times at the moment, but this helped to raise the spirits of the team, as well as our customers.
‘It’s great to be able to give something to the NHS too as they’re doing an amazing job and saving lives everyday – it’s good that we can show how much we appreciate them.’
Meanwhile in North Wales, customers on the quiet streets of Cemaes Bay, Anglesey have noticed their post being delivered by Scooby Doo, Batman and a mariachi, courtesy of the team at Llangefni Delivery Office, who raised £1,800 for the NHS.
One customer told the North Wales Daily Post: ‘Two letters, a bank statement and a reminder of a medical appointment being cancelled, and a package which had the wrong car part were delivered to my door by a postman in a funny outfit. Ordinarily I would not have been in a good mood, but the sheer good humour of the postman cheered me up and I was happy to donate to a very good cause.’
And in Galashiels, postman James Morley has been raising a few chuckles by doing his round dressed as Iron Man, a look which has been particularly popular with older customers, who haven’t been able to see their grandchildren as much as they usually would.
‘Older people are at home and haven’t been able to see their grandchildren and families,’ said James. ‘A lot of them wanted the photos so they could say that Iron Man had delivered their post. I’ve had people who’ve missed me asking me to come back round again so they can get photos and their children can see me through the window.’
