North Tyneside charities spread the love with Valentine’s treat for homeless people

One of the 50 homeless people to have received a Valentine's grazing box treat donated by North Shields' charities Cedarwood Trust, Tin on a Wall and Streetworx. Credit: Joanne Scorer, The Cedarwood Trust

Charities which work to reduce food poverty have been giving out luxury grazing boxes to homeless people ahead of Valentine's Day.

Tin on A Wall and Cedarwood Trust, which both operate in North Tyneside, turned their monthly food collection into a Valentine's Day treat, putting together grazing boxes filled with freshly-made sandwiches, scones and cakes, as well as grapes, cookies and strawberries.

Joanne Scorer, who runs Tin On A Wall, said: “I wanted to do something different on Valentine's Day for our homeless friends.

“I used my contacts to help us put something very special together for Valentine’s Day and all the hard work was worth it when we rocked up with grazing boxes.

“The people we handed them out to were absolutely blown away. One man when I opened the box pointed at one item and said 'I’ll have that thing there please.' I had to explain that it was all for him! He just couldn’t believe it. He was so happy.”

North Shields charities Tin on a Wall and The Cedarwood Trust provided grazing goodie boxes for the homeless. Credit: Joanne Scorer, The Cedarwood Trust

Tin On A Wall was working with North Shields-based Cedarwood Trust and volunteers from Streetworx, a Newcastle homelessness charity.

The Cedarwood Trust, which is based on the Meadow Well Estate, makes free, fresh meals for vulnerable people with food donated by Tin On A Wall.

In her free time, Ms Scorer volunteers with Streetworx to help the homeless in Newcastle city centre, giving out hot drinks, as well as warm clothing, socks, gloves, shoes, sleeping bags and blankets.

Michael Brown, a chef at Cedarwood Trust, with some of the sandwiches for the homeless. Credit: Joanne Scorer, The Cedarwood Trust

Cedarwood is one of half a dozen charities Tin On A Wall supports every month.

Wayne Dobson, chief executive of Cedarwood Trust, welcomed the donations and said: “Our charity is all about tackling food poverty.

"Over the past few years we have helped make a real difference to the lives of people who are struggling to feed themselves and their families, and we couldn’t do that without partners like Tin On A Wall.

“When Joanne told us what she planned to do for Valentine’s Day, we jumped at the chance to be part of it.

"We have a team of highly skilled chefs who were able to help create a very special, tasty surprise for people who maybe don’t often feel very loved – hopefully today they are feeling like they are loved."

Some of the cakes donated by Tin on a Wall and delivered by The Cedarwood Trust and Streetworx volunteers to homeless people.. Credit: Joanne Scorer, The Cedarwood Trust

Mr Dobson added: “Most of the ingredients we used would otherwise have been sent to landfill, which goes to show there is enough food to go round for everyone – it is just about making sure those that need feeding, get fed.

“For those that are facing a tough time feeding themselves – which is more people than ever in the current economic climate – organisations like Tin On A Wall and Cedarwood Trust are here for them.”

In the past year, the Cedarwood Trust has used 21.5 tonnes of donated food to make into meals.

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