Volunteers from the Molly Rose Foundation recently manned a stall at the 2021 Elstree and Borehamwood Craft Fair, which is organised annually by Dr Ann Goddard to raise funds for the NSPCC and took place at its longstanding location – the Allum Manor House & Hall in Borehamwood, north-west of London.
MRF was represented at the Fair again this year, held on 7th November, following our first attendance as a charity at the 2019 event – the last time it was able to take place before the pandemic lockdowns began last year.
This year’s Craft Fair involved a wide variety of stalls with offerings including home-made jam, knitwear, woodwork, jewellery, pottery, quilting and toys. Highlights included various musical contributions staged during the day, including the Borehamwood Brass Band which celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2021.
We brought along a variety of materials, merchandise and resources as part of our stall display. These included our popular ‘My bag of happiness’ packs, which consist of an attractive purple organza bag containing an MRF-branded pencil together with a ‘luggage’ label and string, a sheet of different coloured smiley-face stickers, a pack of post-it notes, a silicone MRF bracelet and a handful of our popular credit card-sized Help Cards.
MRF’s ‘My bag of happiness’ packs are aimed at primary school children. Children write down their happy memories and thoughts on a Post-it Note and then place it in their bag. If ever a child feels sad or anxious, they can go to their bag and remember their happy feelings. The feedback from schools has been amazing, with the children really enjoying this activity.
• If you’d like to receive one or more ‘My bag of happiness’ packs please get in touch with us here: hello@mollyrosefoundation.org
If you’re struggling just text MRF to 85258 so you can speak to a trained volunteer from Shout, the UK’s Crisis Text Line service
