Caregiver Spotlight – Claire Evans

Claire has been working with Visiting Angels for a year now and wears many hats- Family Woman , Angel Caregiver and a Poppy Appeal volunteer.

The Poppy Appeal is the Royal British Legion’s biggest fundraising campaign held every year in November, during the period of Remembrance. Supporting veterans and their families in debt and emergency situations, it provides vital support for the Armed Forces community. You can read more about the cause HERE.

Claire personifies the ethos of the Royal British Legion, she is caring, compassionate, friendly, approachable and has a can-do attitude. Even though Claire has never served in the military she has family and friends who have, and she has taken on board all the military ethos.

These traits have been more evident during the last eighteen months and the Covid-19 pandemic. As soon as the country went into lock down, Claire (as branch secretary) took it upon herself to organise members of the Hemsworth Royal British Legion Branch to carry out tasks such as shopping, ordering/collecting prescriptions or just to ring members of the Branch who were house bound and who had no family. Claire even took on the role of Poppy Appeal Organiser for Wakefield and tackled this role with her usual drive and determination. Her organisational skills were soon in full flow as she was soon organising volunteers to help man stalls, delivering school packs, and making sure she had enough stock for these stalls. At one stage her house looked as if it was its own poppy shop!

Finally, just this year Claire has helped to relaunch the Wakefield Royal British Legion Branch. Even though it is early days, Claire is one of the driving forces behind this branch ensuring that social media is in place and the local community is aware of its relaunch.

We spoke to Claire to find out more about her volunteer work.

Tell us more about the organization you’re supporting and what made you join the cause?

Working for the Poppy Appeal, it’s a volunteering role I do. My grandfather was a part of World War Two and he got me involved in the Poppy Appeal since a young age. I have actively been a part of the fundraising drives by selling poppies and the merchandise. The proceeds then go towards helping people serving in the forces and ex-servicemen who need help and support with family life and day to day living.

How long have you been associated with the poppy appeal?

I have been associated with the Poppy Appeal for 37 years now and have recently taken up the role of the poppy appeal Organizer where I oversee all the fundraising activities.

What is the biggest challenge you face every day, and what keeps you going despite that?

The Covid restrictions have been a huge challenge so far because it was much more difficult to gather and have these volunteer activities when you cannot meet and greet or spend time talking to each other.

If you could change one thing about how people viewed the organisation, and what would it be?

People do have this misconception that you need to have served in the forces to be a part of the Poppy Appeal or even the Royal British Legion but that is not the case. Anyone can be a part of the cause if they feel like supporting the forces of the country.

How do you balance managing the fundraising work and the care work?

Since I have started working in my life, I have always taken time off for three weeks for the Poppy Appeal- be it my annual holidays or unpaid leave. Fortunately, I never had to take unpaid leave here at Visiting Angels as they have been amazingly supportive throughout it all by offering paid time off and a lovely donation towards the Poppy appeal as well to help me reach the target of £58,000.

Claire has done a truly amazing job volunteering for the Royal British Legion and raising vital funds for the Poppy Appeal, especially with this year being the Royal British Legions Centenary year. We at Visiting Angels have supported her throughout by ensuring Claire had the time off as and when required to take part in this long serving charity venture.

Having served in the Royal Air Force, The Poppy Appeal is a cause very close to my heart due to its lifelong support of Serving and Ex-Serving personnel. The Royal British Legion relies on its volunteer staff, as without their dedication and hard work they would not be able to collect these funds which do so much good, Visiting Angels are extremely proud of Claire for the Charity work she does and will continue to support her for years to come.

– Steven Bowler, General Manager of Visiting Angels South Yorkshire.

We wish Claire Evans all the best in her venture and aim to support her cause in every way.