In Their Own Words

This latest set of Cherwell Collective impact stories were made possible by Oxfordshire County Council Community Capacity fund, managed by Oxfordshire Community Foundation.  Today, we share vignettes from these stories of change from various community members in their own words. Some participants have asked that we alter their names to maintain their confidentiality.

Rob’s Story

Rob first attended Cherwell Larder to collect surplus food to use over Christmas and has since frequently attended Winter Warmer events, where we open a warm place for community members to gather. This has supported him and his lodger during the cost of living crisis and enabled him to form a stronger connection to his local community.  He told us:

“I heard about the Larder from chatting to people – they were saying ‘Oh, they give away food at the Larder’. But then one Christmas, I came along and I ended up with two carrier bags full of amazing food that I could have over Christmas time.

“The benefits are amazing. I mean, we’ve had lots of nappies for the baby, just food generally, loaves of bread, vegetables, anything. It’s just helped feed me, my lodger, and her baby – saved an awful lot of money just by coming here.

“It’s a nice, safe, warm place for people to go. It’s a real benefit to the community, it certainly benefited us.”

“The three of us started coming along to the Winter Warmer events. That was a godsend because it was either sit at home with the heating on or go out somewhere else and pay to be in a restaurant or a play area. We’d come along, and we’d spend all day here. The little one would play on the floor with whatever toys were out, and we’d sit and have a cup of tea and a meal. You get a lot of old people coming here simply because they can’t afford to heat their home and they’ll be here chatting with other old folk. It’s a nice, safe, warm place for them to go. It’s a real benefit to the community. It certainly benefited us.

“We met a lot of people here, a lot of really good people. It’s great now because you’ll be walking around Kidlington, and I’ll be like ‘Oh, hi,’ nodding to people that I know that have been here. It turned from something where you could go and get food and a cup of tea and a meal to actually a proper social event where you can come and catch up with people you haven’t seen for a couple of weeks.

“It’s just been really, really helpful all the way through.”

Sarah’s Story

Sarah and her husband started coming to the Climatarian Kitchen, where they have made new and lasting friendships. Meeting other people in the cafe has allowed them to forge strong community connections, which act as a support network for each other. Sarah told us:

“We started coming here nearly a year ago. We’d no idea what it was, and we walked in feeling very visible. But once we’d been a couple of times and met these friends here, we then started coming on our own. We bring, and we share with other people, and we just love it.

“We have made some really good friends, spoken to lots and lots of different people, and we encourage other people to come now that we know that it’s a safe place. Nobody’s looking at you, nobody’s watching and saying, ‘Why are they here?’ It’s open to everybody.

“It’s doing what the whole world should be doing: taking care of each other.”

“It’s a good way of me bringing in stuff that I’m finished with. Rather than putting it in a charity shop, I bring in a lot of clothes that I’ve finished with, and put them on the rails . I gave a lot of books to the lady behind me. She’s delighted. It’s that whole thing, like the plant seeds. I put them in people’s Easter cards. The staff are all brilliant. I’ve got them Easter cards… it’s just making relationships with them, feeling positive.

“Just talking to the people here, sharing with the people here, that just makes such a difference – and I guess that does help your mental health. And then I say to other people, ‘Come along, come and join us, it’s really good.’ So yes, it does help mental health, whether you think you’ve got mental health issues or not. So I guess coming here helps keep you happy, keeps you looking out for people.

“Connections. That’s what you’re doing, you’re making connections, and you’re encouraging other people to feel connected, because you acknowledge them, when you see them out. It’s friendship as it should be, it’s not you or me, but being selfless. It’s doing what the whole world should be doing: taking care of each other.”

Miguel’s Story

Miguel comes to the Larder to save money, as he has to look after his elderly parents financially. He praises the food and service at Cherwell Larder and enjoys the big celebrations at Christmas and for birthdays. Miguel appreciates the way our programmes save food from waste as well. He elaborated with our team:

“[Cherwell Larder] has helped me to save money because I’m helping family back home. My landlord told me that you can go there and take some food and you can make some donation and also save [the food] from becoming waste.

“For me it’s the homesickness, I miss my family and also the pressure of work. That financially, and our health, are challenges. Like my parents are getting old, so I need to take care of them financially and their health also. For me, I save a lot financially. I come here to take food and I give some donation. So it’s helped me.

The service and the food [are outstanding]. The New Year and the people here celebrating their birthdays, it’s good. Instead of throwing away, you can use [the food]. I mean it’s excellent.

“Like my parents are getting old, so I need to take care of them financially and their health also. For me, I save a lot financially.”

I think it’s getting better. [If Cherwell Larder were open longer hours] that would be very good or maybe an extra day. [Not opening] on Fridays is not a big deal for me, I go to the WISH shop.”

Cherwell Larder is open Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 11am to 2pm at WISH, 4 the Parade, Kidlington OX5 1EE

Boima’s Story

When Boima retired, he joined Cherwell Collective as a volunteer. He sees real value in the work he does, helping others amidst the cost of living crisis. Boima also gets a lot out of the camaraderie he enjoys with the other volunteers. He explained to our interviewer:

“I think what we’re doing is very relevant to what’s happening right now because there are so many people who need help with cost of living, with inflation, with COVID, and things like that.

“Sometimes you see people, offer them things, and you can see that they’re happy. Some of them come in just to engage with us, talk to us, and tell us about what’s happening with them. I enjoy having a banter with some of the other volunteers as well. They’re friendly and a nice bunch. We have some jokes. They also give quite a lot themselves. 

“I have a lot of respect and admiration for the people here. I was interested in the meeting that we had where people came up with ideas on how we could improve things…We’re thinking of doing some new things… we have a lot of equipment and stuff that we could try to move and get people to either rent or just borrow. 

Boima added, “I enjoy waking up in the morning, coming here knowing that I’m going to help people.”

About Our “In Their Own Words” Stories

The Oxfordshire County Council Community Capacity fund, managed by the Oxfordshire Community Foundation, made possible the vignettes shared in today’s blog post.  As part of the funding, the team took storytelling training and then trained other volunteers to conduct interviews and gather stories to demonstrate the impact of our work.