Heartfelt donations

Colleagues at Leeds Mail Centre have spearheaded two fantastic projects to help support the local community during the Covid-19 crisis.

Administrator Sharon Watson and late shift support Inder Arora (pictured) have been collecting toiletries for Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield.

Sharon, who works in the book room, wanted to collect donations after seeing a Facebook post from Inder’s wife, Reena, who works at the hospital.

‘We have more than 1,000 people here at the office, and I knew we could make a big contribution,’ said Sharon. ‘Hospitals are overrun, so I will continue with donations for as long as it takes.’

Inder added: ‘I salute everyone who has brought stuff in. The hospital staff were overwhelmed with our collective effort.’

Meanwhile, postman Dave Bottomley has worked at Leeds for 47 years. His daughter, Chloe, is an NHS pathologist technician at Leeds Infirmary.

The mortuary team there have been crocheting pairs of hearts for those who have lost loved ones to the virus.

‘This heart is part of a pair,’ reads the accompanying note, ‘we have given the other to your loved one. We hope this brings you some comfort at this difficult time.’

Chloe approached her dad to ask if Royal Mail would provide some pre-paid envelopes for the tokens. After Dave approached his managers, 40 envelopes were signed off.

‘Royal Mail and the NHS are part of a combined effort to tackle this crisis,’ said Dave. ‘I’ve been really proud to be part of this effort for the community.’