MP backs plea for kindness
Washington and Sunderland West MP Sharon Hodgson has been showing her support for the work of the Red Cross and backing its campaign the Power of Kindness.
The Minister of State for International Development and former Langbaurgh MP The Rt Hon Lord Bates and Sharon Hodgson attended a Parliamentary reception, organised by the charity at the House of Commons, to recognise the role of its members.
They met with volunteers and staff to hear about their experiences of being deployed to incidents such as the Grenfell Tower fire, and the London Bridge and Manchester Arena terror attacks.
Volunteers from across Red Cross services; from those getting patients in and out of hospitals to those supporting refugees, and others combatting the impact of loneliness in their communities, attended the reception. Volunteers also spoke about their reasons for giving up their time to support the Red Cross and the evening saw MPs pledging to follow their lead by carrying out their own act of kindness.
The reception came after the Red Cross experienced one of its busiest years since the Second World War, assisting 9,265 people in more than 1,500 emergencies across the UK in 2017. A total of 699 volunteers from the North East gave up their time fortheorganisationthisyear.
Simon Lewis, head of crisis response at the British Red Cross, said: “Last year we saw an unprecedented number of UK emergencies and we simply would not have been able to respond without the support of our staff and volunteers.
“We want to put people and their communities at the heart of emergency response, to help communities rebuild and recover faster and it is heartening to see so many MPs supporting our cause.
“We know everyone has a role to play when disaster strikes, even the smallest act of kindness can make a huge difference.”
The organisation is calling on the public for more support. Contact your local MP and pledge your own act of kindness with the hashtag #PowerofKindness