What follows is a letter from Oliver Thornton from The Waste Team. Oliver is encouraging other Leeds residents and businesses to consider volunteering for the charity’s green Christmas Treecycling scheme this year.
Dear Editor,
I am writing to encourage other businesses to consider getting involved with volunteering for Sue Ryder’s Christmas Treecycling scheme this year.
My brother, Daniel, and I are The Waste Team. Last year, we volunteered for Sue Ryder’s Christmas Treecycling initiative for the first time after our dad was cared for at Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice. Sue Ryder Nurses provided exceptional care for our dad. This incredible support motivated us to give back and participate in the green scheme again this year.
Collecting items from people’s homes is our bread and butter, so taking to the streets of Leeds and collecting Christmas trees with our 12 vans and team of 25 was the perfect volunteering opportunity for Daniel and me. We don’t have to handle any logistics; the fundraising team at Sue Ryder takes care of that. All we need to do is get our list of locations in the morning, then set off collecting the trees.
The chippings are recycled in a number of ways – they’re either sold to biomass for a donation, recycled with an environmental plant, and this year some of the chippings will be used as compost for the newly designed gardens at the hospice.
It’s a really fun scheme to be a part of. You get to chat with residents as you pick up their trees, and they’re really grateful. Last year, we collected 500-600 trees and are looking forward to seeing how many we manage this year!
If other businesses are considering getting involved this year, I would say do it. The more we help Sue Ryder expand its reach and collect more trees, the more we support the hospice team in being there for people during the hardest times.
This year we will be collecting from residents in the LS6, LS7, LS8, LS12, LS13, LS16, LS18, LS19, LS20, LS21, LS26, LS27, LS28, BD11 postcodes between 9-14 January 2025.
To get involved with volunteering, contact the fundraising team at Sue Ryder Wheatfields Hospice on 0113 203 3317 or email: [email protected]
Kind regards,
Oliver Thornton, The Waste Team
Main image: Jo Stevens, Leeds Community Fundraising Manager, with some of the collected trees. Christmas 2023.
