A KIND-hearted teenager found an egg-cellent way to help make Easter extra special this year for care home residents in Wrexham.<\/p>\n
Miss Teen Wrexham, Lilly-Anne Gibson, spearheaded a goodwill drive to provide Easter eggs for the residents of the Pendine Park care organisation she has been writing to throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
She was overwhelmed by the response from her school community at Ysgol y Grango, Rhos, after about 40 eggs were gifted by pupils, staff and parents in less than 24 hours before the end of term.<\/p>\n
Lilly-Anne, 16, paid a visit to Pendine Park’s Summerhill Road site to hand over the gifts..<\/p>\n
The visit also provided her with a moving first face-to-face meeting with some of the residents she has been in regular correspondence with.<\/p>\n
Lilly-Anne, who took a break from studying for her GCSE qualifications to hand over the eggs, was delighted by the willingness people showed to help make it a particularly happy Easter at Pendine Park.<\/p>\n
“We put a message out on social media to see if anybody would like to contribute. I was amazed the next day to see how many eggs had been brought in,” said Lilly-Anne, of Ponciau.<\/p>\n
“It was amazing to see just how many people wanted to contribute and provide Easter eggs for the residents of Pendine Park.<\/p>\n
“The response in such a short timeframe was incredible. I’m really grateful that so many eggs were donated, which I’ve now been able to hand over.<\/p>\n
“I have just wanted to put a smile on the faces of the residents this Easter.”<\/p>\n
Lilly-Anne’s goodwill gesture followed her providing further welcome relief at Pendine Park during a lengthy lockdown process at the homes.<\/p>\n
She approached the organisation about whether she could write letters to residents, both as part of the Duke of Edinburgh scheme and to help build a rapport with them amid the pandemic.<\/p>\n
Like pen pals of days gone by, Lilly-Anne has regularly corresponded with a group of residents ever since – with both parties waxing lyrical about their lives and interests.<\/p>\n
But stringent lockdown restrictions meant she had been unable to meet any of them until she brought in the Easter eggs.<\/p>\n
“It has been so nice to finally put faces to some of the names,” said Lilly-Anne, who hopes to compete for the Miss Teen Great Britain crown later this year.<\/p>\n
“When you start writing to these people you don’t know them, but over time they become like friends.<\/p>\n
“Lockdown has made it difficult for them to see their families, so I hope it helps them a bit that we can write to each other.<\/p>\n
“If it was physically possible then I would love to write to every single Pendine Park resident, to show them I am thinking of them all.<\/p>\n
“It has been lovely to chat to a couple of the residents and I look forward to writing to them again soon.<\/p>\n
“They are such nice people and have lots of interesting stories to share.”<\/p>\n
One of the residents who got to chat with Lilly-Anne was Mark Cartwright, after they had regularly exchanged letters in the past year.<\/p>\n
Mark was able to talk to her while he attended an art class session, with Lilly-Anne standing outside the building due to social distancing restrictions.<\/p>\n
Although he will not be able to eat the Easter eggs due to being lactose intolerant, Pen y Bryn resident Mark, 58, was still delighted by the kind gesture.<\/p>\n
“It is very nice for Lilly-Anne to bring all these Easter eggs here today,” said Mark, who has been a Pendine Park resident for about 13 years.<\/p>\n
“It’s just a shame I can’t have any of them myself, but I still appreciate what Lilly-Anne has done.<\/p>\n
“Lilly-Anne has been writing to us. It is really nice to finally get the chance to meet her and chat with her.”<\/p>\n
The visit was arranged by Pendine Park’s artist in residence Sarah Edwards.<\/p>\n
“We are very grateful for the Easter gifts that Lilly-Anne has brought here,” said Sarah.<\/p>\n
“She has been writing to our residents and has wanted to come in and bring the Easter eggs. We are glad that this has been possible.<\/p>\n
“It is nice that she has had the opportunity to meet with some of the residents that she has been writing to. They have enjoyed talking to her.”<\/p>\n