Yet again it was a pleasure for our club to hand over a donation at our Tuesday meeting - this time to Steve Mellers MBE from local charity Necessary Furniture; the money will help fund a much-needed steam cleaner.
Again, this was a donation approved by our Community Services Committee - which focuses on activities and charities/causes in the local community. Necessary Furniture is a local charity based in Hersden that provides recycled furniture to "those on a low income, receiving benefits, single parents or who just need a helping hand."
As the charity says, "Necessary Furniture has been supporting people in East Kent for over 20 years, collecting good quality household items from considerate members of the community; refurbishing and cleaning them where required, and delivering to those who need them the most."
Our money will go towards the cost of buying a new steam cleaner, which will be used to clean the furniture donated to the charity before it gets bought by their customers (furniture often arrives in a forlorn state). Such use of furniture really is win-win - those who need it get help furnishing their home, while furniture is saved from going to landfill. Over its 20 years, Necessary Furniture has saved 300+ tonnes of furniture from going into landfill - in these days of great environment awareness it's a worthy cause to support.
The charity specifically states that the cleaner will help:
- Clean upholstered items such as chairs, sofas and stools.
- Take away stains and marks from items such as mattresses, pillows and rugs.
- Help make items look more aesthetically pleasing with cleaner, shinier surfaces.
- Remove smoke, perfume or damp smells from fabric and plastics.
Trustees and staff of Necessary Furniture told us that they were "delighted with Canterbury Rotary Club’s donation towards the new steamer," commenting that "the donation is very generous and will make such a difference in the preparation of sofas and beds we recycle – it will help make them look like new!" They also added: "Many thanks to all the Rotarians who have donated furniture to us over the years – such donations have truly helped many hundreds of people in the area."
Necessary Furniture helped us set up our duck race earlier in the year; if you came along you may have noticed their small stall and the more eagle (?duck)-eyed among you will have noticed their logo on our duck race flyers.
To find out more about Necessary Furniture, click here.
Picture: President Neil Fraser gives the donation to Steve Mellers during our meeting. Picture credit: Viv Pritchard/Rotary Club of Canterbury.
