I started making these "Gingers" as a way to cope with being stuck at home at the beginning of the COVID lock down.
I planned to put a dozen or so in my front window: partly to thank the local key-workers and local heroes, and partly for the children to come and look at on their daily walks.
I posted a few photos on a "We're all in this together" local page on Facebook and got great responses - people suggested new ones for me to make, and explained they loved waking up to a new Ginger each morning!
So not only have I found making these very therapeutic: but they clearly helped other people too. Eventually we could see that lockdown would start to be relaxed, and we had to come up with an exit strategy or I'd be making them forever!
Some people had already suggested they wanted to buy one or two specific Gingers so instead we decided to auction off 48 of them to raise money for the Wraysbury and Horton Voluntary Care charity that helped so many people in so many ways over lockdown (continuing the good work they have done for the last 30 or so years but on a much larger scale!)
The Gingers brought out the best in people: many people have experienced or seen negative comments on Facebook but there was honestly nothing other than positive feedback: People not only bid on the Gingers, but some people paid for Gingers they did not win - a straight forward contribution; other didn't even bid but made a donation; on several occasions a Ginger was bought and gifted to another village resident
COVID19 has been a shocking experience but it has shown how well our villages can come together!!
Just when I thought The "Ginger Factory" could close - the Parish Council asked me to make a duplicate set to keep in a frame in a community building in the village ... so I started all over again!
Have a look at the Gingers A-Z page to see some on the individual Gingers
The total I raised for the charity is £1506!!!
(To see how they are made look at the technical page)
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