Gift shoeboxes handed to Rotary Guernesiais

At the base of construction firm Breton, in the Braye Road Industrial Estate, dozens of Rotary volunteers were on hand to initially receive boxes from islanders, before checking them for banned items and then sorting them into age and gender categories. Collections have since been taking place this week, before the boxes are sent out for delivery this weekend in two containers supplied by Channel Seaways.

Rotary shoebox committee member Ann Outram was hoping that the total number of shoeboxes donated would reach 4,500 this year.

‘Last year we got 4,200, so I’d love to beat that.’

She said that the most important job for Rotary volunteers was checking for banned items in boxes, which included battery-powered objects, war-related items, food, liquids and medicines.

‘We don’t want anything to be in the boxes that will prevent them from clearing customs,’ she said.

Among the largest donors in terms of total boxes given was Joy Bourgaize, who with help from a team at Capelles church, had donated 390 boxes.

But as a donor for more than 40 years, Mrs Bourgaize said that she felt 390 was a ‘poor’ total compared to some of her efforts from previous years.

She had started getting this year’s boxes ready in February.

‘I’ve got seven grandchildren who help me,’ she said.

‘It keeps me busy and it’s something to do, and some of the items I actually make myself, like hats and gloves.’

Among those to also reach three figures in donated boxes were mother and daughter Rosemary and Nikki Senior, who were giving 100.

Mrs Senior said they had been donating boxes for about 10 years, and for this year’s appeal had even travelled over to Southampton twice for shopping trips.

‘We store everything at home and then my husband helps us pack it all into our van,’ she said.

‘It’s for such a good cause, we get so much out of it.’

n To find out more about helping, visit https://www.rotary-ribi.org/clubs/homepage.php?ClubID=1782.