2020 wasn’t all bad!
Moments to inspire over past 12 months
AT the beginning of 2020 many of us were vowing to go to the gym seven times a week to burn off the extra mince pies consumed over Christmas, or promising ourselves we would learn a new skill.
Instead, many of us faced heartbreak at the loss of loved ones, challenges in keeping businesses going and mental health struggles – sometimes all three and more.
But the year also taught us about community spirit, hope, and that new year’s resolutions like being kind to one another are often more important than losing a few extra few pounds on the scales.
No stranger to challenges, the town of Llanelli has faced its fair share of struggles, but it is also an example of a community pulling together during the darkest of days.
Here are some examples of brilliant things that happened in Llanelli in 2020:
We smiled at our community heroes
Normal people showing little acts of kindness were celebrated more than ever before and helped raise people’s spirits during the difficult year.
Even the youngest among us wanted to show our appreciation, including three-year-old Theo Jenkins, who used his Christmas present to put a smile on others’ faces, delivering food to frontline workers.
Theo, from Llanelli, along with his parents used his toy ‘Home Bargains’ truck to make his deliveries at a local ambulance station and care home.
His mum Fran said: “We got the idea because he said that he wanted to make people smile.
“We’re just so proud that he cheered people up, they really deserve it.”
Another to put a smile on people’s faces was 24-year-old Ffion Hamill from Furnace, who has garnered millions of views and fans around the world, including in Australia and the US, after dressing up as characters and providing viewers with little videos of inspiration.
Every day during the first lockdown, Ffion could be found sat in front of a camera dressed head to toe as a Christmas tree, a weightlifter or Nessa from Gavin and Stacey.
Now Ffion is recognised in the streets of Llanelli and people have been thanking her for brightening up their day with her pearls of wisdom.
Ffion said: “The pandemic has been really hard but I have made sure to stay in contact with my friends and family to make sure that they are ok and I hope that I’ve made people smile.”
You definitely have, Ffion.
■ The woman who helped cheer people up during lockdown
Celyn Mathews from Llanelli also spent her lockdown putting smiles on others’ faces by growing sunflowers from seeds and leaving them on people’s doorsteps.
The young girl also set up a book exchange on her garden wall as a way to raise money for local food banks and the Welsh Air Ambulance.
■ The town got a splash of colour
While rainbows hung in nearly every home window, somewhere else that was given a well-needed pop of colour was Llanelli.
Dad-of-three Steve Jenkins was often spotted creating beautiful tributes to NHS staff, rainbows in unlikely places and homages to some of Llanelli’s most recognisable features.
Steve, who goes by the name ‘Jenks,’ was commended by the community for adding a touch of colour to the town centre when it was most needed.
■ We celebrated carers and healthcare workers
2020 was the year of the NHS and the year that we celebrated our amazing carers and health care workers for the incredible work that they do.
And there was no shortage of amazing people in Llanelli to commend, including 24-year-old dad Jordan Williams.
The carer, who works at Ty Mair in Felinfoel, made an incredible sacrifice by missing the first months of his son’s life.
In order to continue caring for residents during the pandemic, Jordan moved into a room in the care home in Felinfoel in March, just weeks after his second son Jacob was born.
“I love my job. The residents here aren’t just resi-dents to me, they are like my family so I wanted to keep my kids safe while I could still help the residents here through the pandemic,” said Jordan.
■ More local businesses opened up in the town
Despite being an incredibly testing time for businesses, the town centre has seen a number of amazing, new local businesses open up over 2020.
Bombay Bites, an Indian restaurant in the centre of the town, opened on March 9, just weeks before the pandemic and lockdown was announced.
Two new cafés also opened up in the middle of the town centre, including Mizpah in Vaughan Street and Hwyl on Market Street.
Owned by couple Viktoria and Jason Cross, Hwyl opened during the week that the alcohol ban was imposed and all hospitality businesses were asked to close by 6pm.
Hwyl owner Jason said: “The call was there. You go to Swansea or Carmarthen and there’s loads of nice places to have a drink, a cocktail or something to eat and Llanelli didn’t have anything like that .”
■ We supported local businesses
Along with new businesses, many of us realised the importance of supporting local businesses in Llanelli during a very challenging year.
Travel restrictions have meant that more of us have been visiting our local corner shops, ordering from local restaurants and Llanelli Market.
Hopefully, this support for independent and local businesses, as well as the town centre, will continue long after the pandemic.
■ We created entire field hospitals from scratch
It was a shocking sight to see community centres where locals have gone to watch sports, events and played games being filled with hospital beds in order to support local health services.
The project was one we never wanted to be necessary and thankfully most beds at the four field hospitals in Carmarthenshire have remained empty, although they have been used to an extent.
But the installation of 600 hospital beds in four huge venues over the course of just three weeks by a group of volunteers was an incredible feat.
The four field hospitals, dubbed ‘ Ysbytai Enfys’, were proof of how quickly the community pulled together when it was needed.
■ We took part in and supported Black Lives Matter protests
The death of George Floyd in the USA during his arrest by police sparked an international outcry and waves of Black Lives Matter protests around the world, including in Llanelli.
The town held protests organised by group Stand up to Racism, and educated people on what needs to happen in Wales to achieve true equality.
■ We supported the vulnerable
Along with community groups being formed to support the vulnerable and more donations to food banks, a number of neighbours were checking in with each other more in 2020.
We also saw a number of rival grassroots rugby clubs at the heart of their communities work together to help deliver care packages to the elderly and vulnerable as part of the Scarlets Community Foundation.
With people self-isolating and the vulnerable and elderly finding it increasingly difficult to get vital goods, hundreds of essential packages were delivered by rugby players across the region.
Scarlets community fund manager Caroline Newman said: “The clubs in the region have been amazing, they have jumped on board and it just shows how much of a vital part they are to the communities in the area.
“We’ve had messages from grown men saying that seeing these boys doing something so worthwhile and helping others is making them really proud to be from the area.”
■ We still celebrated Christmas
Although the annual Christmas Carnival was not able to go ahead, local businesses in Llanelli decided to join forces to put together their own parade to make the community smile.
A huge convoy of around 30 vehicles made up of taxis, vans, and bin lorries decked with Christmas decorations and playing festive music snaked through the streets of Llanelli, much to the surprise of residents.
The parade was organised to cheer people up and give children a chance to see Santa Claus pass by, in a way that was safe.
“They wanted to end the year giving something back to their community and the children, who have missed out seeing the Town Carnival,” said a spokesperson for the organisers.
“The idea was to not create a gathering, but to take the Christmas Convoy to them in the community.
“With the reaction from people it was surely needed after the year we have all had.”