We are urging all our readers to do something for somebody else this Christmas to ensure nobody is lonely or isolated. Our campaign was inspired by the tragic story of 30-year-old Christopher Thompson, who took his own life after falling into such financial problems he had just £18.03p a month to spend on food.
Elis Joudalova launched the app Olio in Jersey after moving to the Island five years ago. It lists unsold and unused food from shops and supermarkets which people can then take for free. Though initially set up as a way of tackling food waste, it has quickly become a way for those in financial trouble to ensure they do not go hungry.
Miss Joudalova was moved by Mr Thompson’s story and does not want anybody letting pride get in the way of being able to eat.
She said: ‘We never ask people’s circumstances. We never judge. But we know there’s a certain Britishness, a certain pride, which stops people asking for help. But, over time, we have had messages to thank us. People do confide in us often, but we don’t ask for it. There were lots of single mums, some have become volunteers for us, after using us when in a short-term crisis. There is a social side to this. One of my volunteers said how she was depressed and in bed for two years and after we helped her she’s back on her feet and is now a good friend.’
Some 8,000 people in Jersey are now signed up to Olio, of whom around 80 per cent are women. Miss Joudalova wants anybody struggling to make ends meet to make use of the free service, which can be accessed by a mobile phone app, through a Facebook page and on a website.
Miss Joudalova added: ‘A lady was crying as she was getting divorced, we have elderly people, we have neighbours who cook for others. We’ve also connected with charities and breakfast clubs at schools. It’s just disgraceful to me when they say there are kids coming to school hungry. How can they learn anything?’
Mr Thompson was found in his fishing gear in the grounds of his flat in April, having become so hungry in the hours before he took his own life that he had gone fishing just to have something to eat.
Miss Joudalova recognises that desperation: ‘I’ve had people cry at my door. The most touching is when it’s a mum who is struggling with children on her own. I guess it’s divorce or something and they’re left with kiddies. They stay home and are on benefits and have just £2 a day for food. It’s also sometimes people with a long-term health issue, but there’s often a month before their Income Support payment comes through. There are many, many tears. It’s quite shocking.’
She also cites mental health issues as a common factor.
‘It’s the number one thing. Every second person I meet has a mental-health problem. There is help but it’s sad that some people can’t get that help. The free food is around. Nobody needs to be hungry. We have plenty, daily, all the time, so people can just message us. If they don’t feel they can do it via the app they can do it via the Facebook page and it comes to me directly. Pride doesn’t need to get in the way.’
Mr Thompson’s family, who are backing the JEP’s Jersey Together campaign, are urging Islanders in any kind of crisis to seek help sooner rather than later. They, too, say mental-health issues need to be better understood and that it’s vital people seek the support which is available.
You can download the free Olio app for Apple or Android devices by searching ‘Olio Food Sharing’. The Facebook page is called ‘Jersey Olio Community’ or search for ‘Olio Jersey’ to find the website.
- Please share with us ways you are helping others this Christmas by using the hashtag #JerseyTogether on social media.
