news
Grade 1 student Emma Young from Livingstone
Christian College pens a letter to a senior for the
1,000 Notes of Friendship project. Photo: Supplied
1000 letters
Aussies pen handwritten messages to aged
care recipients in national challenge.
By Dallas Bastian
A
couple of weeks ago, I ordered some plant seeds
from an online seller. They came with a personalised
note detailing care instructions. I read it twice. Not
because the message was unclear but because I wanted to
make the experience of receiving something handwritten last a
little longer.
And that’s the feeling Australian families are hoping to conjure
among aged care residents by taking part in the 1,000 Notes of
Friendship challenge.
Jo Winwood, the head of Be Someone For Someone, the
Feros Care charity behind the initiative, wants to see more people
join the crusade “so that thousands of seniors can experience
the joy of receiving a letter and take solace in the knowledge that
people care”.
“It’s a simple gesture, but the power of a handwritten letter
– that personal touch from one human being to another – can
make a huge difference in someone’s life,” she says.
“This is a terrible time for so many people who live alone or in
a residential facility without visitors or access to their community,
and this project is giving people an easy way to make a big
difference.”
Father-of-three Tony Betts sees the letters as an opportunity
to build empathy in his three children, Tyson (12), Ava (11) and
Isabella (8).
“To me, this is one of the most important outcomes in initiatives
like this because it provides future protection towards social
isolation in our communities,” Betts says.
“We like to think of ourselves as individuals, but this just hides
the important dependencies that we all rely on as people.”
The family is now hoping to receive a return letter.
“The kids rightly pointed out that it’s not truly a social
connection if the connection doesn’t extend in both directions,”
says Betts.
“Whether the receivers decide to take us up on this or not, we
all hope that the cards and the messages contained within them
go some way to assisting the recipients in moving forwards in
these difficult times.”
The Betts family: Tony, Tyson, Gary, Isabella and Ava. Photo: supplied
Doug Gorton receiving a letter as part of the project. Photo: supplied
Bree Hawkins, who sent the project to her daughter’s daycare,
says it’s a huge opportunity for schools, educators and parents.
“Learning about the lost art of letter writing has been a
wonderful lesson for my kids.”
Hawkins adds that there will be many people around the
country currently having conversations about loneliness who
might not be actively doing anything to help the situation.
Feros Care says the campaign has almost reached its initial goal
of 1000 letters in the first few weeks and is now adding some
zeros to its target with plans to continue the project after the
pandemic.
Winwood is calling on more members of the community to
send in a note of friendship, which will be addressed and delivered
to seniors receiving aged care services in the community and in
residential care across the country.
Those who wish to take part can handwrite a card, letter or
poem, or draw or paint a picture, and send to:
1,000 Notes of Friendship Campaign
PO Box 585
Byron Bay
NSW 2481
Participants hoping for a reply can include their address. ■
6
agedcareinsite.com.au