A community hero who helped her local food bank during the pandemic – and now helps feed more than 100 families – was awarded an MBE in honor of the Queen.
Tina Harrison, 62, is a former nursing home director and has always gone out of her way to help her neighbors by forming groups to tackle crime, isolation and financial problems.
But at the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, she started helping out at a food bank near her home and realized the number of people who were in dire need.
With their help, Trinity Foodbank on Westminster Avenue in Radcliffe was distributing from 20 food baskets a week to 150.
Trinity is not a charity, and all donations come from locals and businesses who go out of their way to help others.
Continue reading
On the subject of matching items
Continue reading
On the subject of matching items
Tina, who has lived in Coronation Gardens for 11 years, was aware of the blackboard before the coronavirus crisis began, but when the first lockdown began, organizers came to ask for her help as many senior volunteers had to isolate or screen themselves and were not available.
As businesses began to close and people were on vacation or sometimes out of work, the number of families who needed Tina’s help increased.
But she doesn’t shy away from a challenge and did everything she could to help those who needed it.
The Tafel began offering more and more groceries, then financial aid to those struggling through the lockdown and, after two of the young men who supported the group committed suicide, psychological support to residents trapped in their homes were.
“It’s just grown and grown and we all work together,” said Tina.
“The board really got so big that it couldn’t go back in its place, we had to move to a new building.
“We now make so many bags a week and the Radcliffe community really rallied around us.”
Tina regularly visits people supported by the Tafel and says that many of the people she spoke to are surprised at how many people need her help.
“One councilor said to us, ‘I’ve lived in Radcliffe all my life and I’ve never realized there is so much deprivation,'” she said.
“I think it was an eye opener for so many people and for the community. It really made a difference.”
After Tina realized that the food had to be tailored to Kosher / Halal requirements too, Tina also reached out to the community leaders to make sure the baskets were suitable for those who needed help, enclosed translated support documents and recruited volunteers who spoke the right languages to deliver baskets.
In addition to helping with the grocery bank, Tina started Corrie Gardens Volunteers, a group that works with young people and families to teach gardening skills, and arranged a weekly coffee shop with partners that offers free meals, legal advice and support with universal loan applications.
She has organized a vacation club with daily activities and free meals for children, and in 2019 wrote an application for the Bury City Council’s Community Capital Fund to support a project that encourages young families in the area to work with the older generation to provide groceries to grow with excess items added to the board – this was awarded £ 10,000.
Despite all of her good work, Tina said she was “shocked” when she was told that she would receive an MBE for community service.
She said, “I had no idea this was coming.
“To be honest, I looked at the email they sent me one morning and didn’t really think about it. I didn’t really look at it until later and couldn’t believe it!
“Even when I sent the cover letter in response, I really couldn’t believe what happened.”
Full list of Bury awards
Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
- Arlene Phillips CBE. Choreographer. For dance and charity services. (London, Greater London). Born in Prestwich
remain
- Tina Jacqueline Harrison. For community service in Bury, Greater Manchester during Covid-19. (Radcliffe, Greater Manchester)