Meet the Volunteers - Jane

Well hello again. Yet another new volunteer to show to world today.
Getting rather full to the brim of volunteers, which is great at all the jobs get done in double time. I have to keep finding new jobs for them to do to keep them busy!

Jane has been with us for about the same time as Allen, and has helped beautify the shop.

"I retired in September from my jobs as a PA to a high profile city lawyer, having worked for him for 45 years. He gave me a wonderful send off party and I now help him out on personal work for half a day a week.

I come from a very close family. My mother and brother live near Whinchester and I spend every weekend with them.

I have lived in Shepherds Bush for 30 years and love the area, so I was delighed when Trinity Hospice Shops accepted me as a volunteer.

I love going to the cinema and theatre but am a bit particular about what I see.
Finally, although i don't play any sport, I really enjoy watching it on television - especially cricket and equestian sports(not racing)."

A fan of Eastenders and Elton John, Jame will be here Thursday mornings to fill up and sell lots!

All together now...
"This boys too young to be singing the bluuuuuuuuuuuuuueeeessss..........
ahhhhahhhhhahhhhahhhahh...."

(of course I had to pick the version with the Muppets... )

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If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000


Bye for now
BG

Meet the Volunteers - Allen

Here we have a new addition to our Brook Green family, so I want you all to play nicely and say hello to Allen.

Another male in the ranks along with Pat and Joshua, Allen is a morning person (well some people have to be!) and is here 3 times a week. What a glutton for punishment!

Mondays, Wednesdays and Friday, Allen is here to take your money and makes all our accessories look brilliant so you all want to buy them all. Our belts and ties have never looked more spiffing.

Allen says "In an earlier life, my career was teaching physics and mathematics in Further Education colleges. After a lengthy period of retirement I decided I should do something worthwhile by volunteering at my local Trinity Hospice Shop, while at the same time getting the opportunity to meet new people. I'm happy to say the volunteers at the Brook Green shop are a friendly crowd."

Awww shucks. Thanking you very much, Allen.

***

If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000

Bye for now
BG

Meet the Volunteers - Sarah

I said as soon as we get some new people in, I'll share them with you all, so I'd like you all to meet Sarah

Joining us for only a few months, Sarah is keen to learn some new skills and improve her English from her native Innsbruck, Austria.

'Testing' our fiction books (£1 each!)

"I love the whole idea of charity shops, as we don't really have them back home. The UK takes a bit of getting used to, but while I'm here I've seen lots and volunteering here is lots of fun, and I haven met some lovely people here" (below is Sarah with Andreea)

Sarah has even shown Brook Green to her parents who had a visit here last week and they arrived bringing gifts of Sachertorte! Brook Green does love cake and it was AMAZING! noms

We have cooking books with this recipe in (from £1), but here we have the original for you all to attempt. (Then you can bring us in a piece!)

Sacher Cake (Sachertorte) "This is the original recipe, obtained through the courtesy of Mrs. Anna Sacher." (That we found via Mr Google and Mr Wikipedia!)

3/4 cup (170 g) butter; 6 1/2 oz. (180 g) semi-sweet chocolate; 3/4 cup (170 g) sugar; 8 egg yolks; 1 cup (120 g) flour; 10 egg whites, stiffly beaten; 2 tbls. apricot jam; icing: 1 cup (225 g) sugar; 1/3 cup (80 ml) water; 7 oz. (200 g) semi-sweet chocolate;

Beat butter until creamy. Melt chocolate. Add sugar and chocolate to butter; stir. Add egg yolks one at a time. Add flour. Fold in egg whites. Grease and butter 8-9" cake tin. Pour mixture in. Bake in 275 degree F (140 degree C). oven about 1 hour. Test with toothpick or straw. Remove to board; cool. Cut top off and turn bottom up. Heat apricot jam slightly and spread over top. Cover with chocolate icing, prepared as follows:

Cook sugar and water to thin thread. Melt chocolate in top of double boiler. Add sugar gradually to chocolate. Stir constantly until icing coats the spoon. Pour on top of cake.

- Viennese Cooking, O. & A. Hess, adapted for American use [Crown Publishing:New York] 1952 (p. 229)


And if you make it, please bring in a slice for us here. We shall, erm, test it. noms test.

Bye for now
BG

Volunteer Birthdays!!

Well August is busy for us as we have to eat a lot of cake!

Pat and Yolaine huffing and puffing out the candles. SHARE THE CAKE!!

 

Pat, Yolaine and Andreea all have birthdays within a week or so of each other, so we at t' Green use it as an excuse to stuff our faces with chocolate cake!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

nom nom nom

Bye for now
BG

Meet the Volunteers - Yolaine

End of the week and the final volunteer to introduce you all to. (Well until we get some new ones in)

The shop as been going since Jan 2011 and Yolaine was there from the start.
Every Saturday afternoon, you can find her serving customers and putting stuff out, tidying and tagging. As long as I keep her full of peppermint tea, all is well.

Born in France, Yolaine is great at spotting all the french labels which comes in (which is quite a lot as Brook Green is a rather French area in London) and when a french customer comes in I can pretend I am in Provence while their conversation flows....

Bonjour Yolaine!

Yolaine is also the inventor of 'Photo of the Week'. Basically it allows her to try on oversized dresses and onesies and silly hats and shoes. Might even share some of those photos with you in this blog at some point, if you ask nicely....

Yolaine says "I look forward to my Saturday afternoon in the shop to, jouer á la marchande. I enjoy learning new skills which is totally different to my line of work (HR Management), and meeting new people every week. Plus after 18 years in the UK I can still learn new things!"

***

If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000

Bye for now
BG

Meet the Volunteers - Andreea

Our newest volunteer is Andreea, who has been here for 3 months or so, and yet it seems as she has always been here.

Another Continental volunteer to join ranks with France and Peru, Andreea is from Romania and like Kat started volunteering to develop her retail skills. Not like she needed much help. Any job given she picks up instantly and completes it to a high standard.

Wednesday, she takes up the till after Lisa finishes and Friday is Andreea day, all day.

(Actually while doing these meet the volunteer blog posts, I realise more what an AWESOME set of volunteers we have at Brook Green. Yes. We win the volunteers. Anyway....)

Andreea is a tea drinker with display skills. The over rail displays in the shop are now being done by Andreea, who again has an eye for colour and fashion. Plus she isn't afraid to try things a bit different and it normally works. (I am jealous)
With a masters and lots of ideas Andreea is making her mark in the shop and putting lots of money in the till which is the entire plan! Very well trained....

Her weakness is nail polish and everytime she is in has fantastic nail art adorning her hands. My favourite one was when they looked like fox faces. So cute.

This week it is monsters. Smooshy monsters.

 

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If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000

Bye for now

BG

Meet the Volunteers - Pat

If you love golf, pop in the talk shop with Pat. (Please do.... I can't understand golf. Not my thing)

Our 2nd male volunteer is one of the newest, but Pat's easy going attitude and his 'lets get money in the till' oomph has certainly endeared him to everyone here.
5 months volunteering and already trying to sell everything, including my changing room curtains!

Tuesdays and Thursdays Pat will be putting things out and taking your money! Pat works with Joshua Tuesday afternoons and the manly men get there female admirers in ;) as well as pretty much all day Thursday. Busy busy.

He loves golf and rugby and in his spare time still plays when he can. He loves to get his legs out with a snazzy pair of golfing shorts but he always matches the colours with his shoes. Brilliant.
Poison of choice - Coffee, with 2 sugars (maybe it's a man thing?) and Pat is the naughty volunteer and normally brings in a cake or few for the volunteer team....

Oh and he has the dirtiest sounding laugh of the whole team at Brook Green. Sid James eat your heart out haha!

"Everyone is so friendly and it means I get out of the house and the housework jobs by being here. It is such a great cause and I can keep my brain working doing the till and such. Customers are lovely, even the ones who ask for a discount! tsk tsk. Naughty. I recommend volunteering to anyone." Thanks Pat! Now go take lots of money....

Check out his MANLY apron.

***

If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000

Bye for now
BG

Meet the Volunteers - Lisa

It's Wednesday so that means Lisa is in to swish up and replenish the bric-a-brac.

Along with being super and opening up when I have morning meetings etc, Lisa is our bric-a-brac display woman who makes sure the old stuff sells and the new stuff looks amazing.

The lovely Lisa and her bargain bric-a-brac

Lisa has been at Brook Green pretty much since we opened in 2011 and knows everything there is to know about stuff in the shop. Find her rearranging things or on the till Wednesday morning and she will help you find what you are after.

Mother to 2 lovely boys, Lisa works around school times to have some time for herself....and to find the best bargains as she does love to shop.

Supplied with coffee and given many jobs to do I can concentrate on clearing space and sorting stock and I know the shop will be perfect in Lisa's capable hands.

All the volunteers are great at signing up Gift Aid donors, but Lisa gives herself the challenge to grab more then most - and I can happily say I don't bribe her to do it...unless the extra coffee counts!

When Lisa leaves Wednesday afternoon her shift is taken over by Andreea

Lisa in her own words "When I first started I had not worked for a long time. Since volunteering at Brook Green, I have learnt loads (ie: How to work a till) and I have become more confident. I enjoy working at the shop because the other staff are lovely and I get on with everyone. I also like to have a few hours just getting away from home and being in a different environment. I cannot see myself ever leaving because of how fun it is to work at Brook Green."
(And I definitely didn't bribe her to say that! Honest!)

***

If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000

Bye for now
BG

Meet the Volunteers - Joshua

Another day, another blog, and another lovely Brook Green volunteer to tell about.

Joshua was the first male volunteer in Brook Green and so in his interview we made him assemble things and reach stuff.... I do jest, but in fairness, Joshua can reach things I can't!

Joshua came to us to fill his time for half a day, and a year and a bit later we now have him here 2 days a week. Monday afternoons and Tuesday afternoons.
His drink of choice is a strong coffee, 2 sugars, which he will drink while boiling! Still can't get over that. Iron gullet!

His favourite job is sweeping the floor. Oh how he hates me when I hand him the broom, but to his credit he does it and then demands a coffee. Deal done.

He is very camera shy, so you will just have to pop in to see what he looks like. You will find him at the till, taking all the money as he is one of my top sellers. But he also does sorting and tagging, and any job which I send his way. Plus he loves a bit of rock music so I know when Joshua is in charge of the CD player as this is waffting out of it....

(plus Queen are my favourite band, so bonus points all round!)

***

If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000

Bye for now

BG

Meet the Volunteers - Kat

I said I would introduce you to our lovely team of volunteers and so here we are on this lovely Monday morning, blogging, while the volunteer in question is serving customers! (It's all about delegation!)

Trinity Hospice shops all have a manager, some have an assistant manager, but we wouldn't be able to run without the kind help and support from people donating their time during the week to work in the shops.

If you wondered who dresses our windows along with the manager, it is this talented volunteer.
From Peru, Kat started volunteering to help improve her English and learn some retail skills. She did so well and we spotted her eye for making outfits 'pop' so we let her loose on our dummies and our window dresser was born.

Monday, 11.30ish, naked windows. Hour later and voilà - beautiful outfits and shoes ready for selling! Sometimes she does so well the garments don't even make the dummy before someone wants to buy them.

Clashing colours, same colour different textures, prints etc, all used to full advantage by Kat and our customers love it. We even have one lady who makes a point of going for her run at 1pm every Monday so she can run past and see Kat's new creation.

Kat say, "I have such fun trying out styling the windows, and it has really helped my English skills being here and dealing with customers."

This week Kat has gone for the Green with a dash of Red/Pink

 Burberry top for £45

I say its another winning window. Hurrah!

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If you wish to volunteer at Brook Green or any of Trinity Hospice shops (Locations here) get in touch by emailing Anna Alcock retailvolunteers@trinityhospice.org.uk or phoning her on 020 7787 1000

Bye for now
BG

Next week treats....

We have decided it is high time you 'meet' the volunteers.

Without these lovely people giving up their time during the week and weekends, Brook Green would not be as tidy or as busy or as fun a place to be.
They are the key players in running the shop and each of them have skills to bring to make Brook Green a better place. Awww.

Starting on Monday, they will be posted up on the day they work.

Now play nicely, and I'll see you all bright and early Monday.

Bye for now
BG