Winter Appeal

I don’t know what I would have done without Friends of the Elderly, there was no one I could turn to for help. I am eternally grateful.

Iris*, 73

Iris’ Story

“I am 73 and live on my own. I lost my husband recently and things have proved to be a bit tough since then. I am massively struggling and I don’t know where to go for help.

Since losing my husband, I still have to run everything on just my pension. The oil tank runs my heating and hot water. I put away £5 per week for oil, that helps but it’s still not enough. I can only thank God for what Friends of the Elderly did for me. They were amazing, they gave me £400 for heating oil. Without that I’d be stuffed.”

We need your help to support older people like Iris through the bitterly cold and isolating winter months ahead.

Every penny you donate will directly help older people keep warm and safe through the tough winter months. Examples include winter clothing and bedding for warmth, help affording heating costs including bills and fuel (oil and logs), boiler repairs and maintenance, cookers to make warm meals, heat appliances, carpets and flooring, new windows and doors to stop drafts, damp proofing and roofing repairs.

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“… I barely have the lights on at all, to keep my costs down. In the evening when it gets dark, I only have one light on in one room and I light a candle in the kitchen.

I’ve got no choice, I’ve got to put up with this. I sometimes think, what is the point in carrying on? It’s a real situation, where you really do have to choose whether to eat or heat your home…”

Iris and her husband worked all their lives. When her husband was taken ill with a heart condition and then cancer, Iris became his full time carer for ten years, looking after him – and after her mother too – until they died. She told us:

“… It’s utter devotion, caring for someone like that. You are mentally and physically exhausted. You never really sleep. In the end, my mum, my husband, they were like bags of bones. You just want them to have some peace…

… I don’t know what I would have done without Friends of the Elderly, there was no one I could turn to for help. I am eternally grateful.”

*Name and photos changed for confidentiality

8% of pensioners said they would not be able to meet an unexpected expense of £200
6% of people over the age of 75 report often feeling lonely
Approximately 1 in 5 older people have a severe physical health condition
1.3 million older unpaid carers (age 65+) have felt unhappy or depressed, and have lost sleep due to worry, clearly demonstrating their diminished quality of life.

After receiving a grant from Friends of the Elderly, the older people we have supported have told us**:

89% felt less stressed, anxious or worried;
90% felt happier;
71% felt more positive about the future.

**survey results for 1000 people, data is being gathered on an ongoing basis, figures correct at time of publishing

Thanks to gifts from generous people like you, we were able to give Iris a grant of £400 to buy heating oil and cover the increased cost of her heating bills.
When the relentless grasp of winter takes hold and heating bills soar, your support will offer comfort, security, and hope to older people like Iris, who have nowhere else to turn.

Your kind donation will pay for the essentials some older people cannot afford, for example warm clothing, a duvet, a new cooker to make hot meals or to help cover heating bills.

Winter Appeal

Iris’ Story

We need your help to support older people like Iris through the bitterly cold and isolating winter months ahead.

Donate now

After receiving a grant from Friends of the Elderly, the older people we have supported have told us**:

89% felt less stressed, anxious or worried; 90% felt happier; 71% felt more positive about the future.

**survey results for 1000 people, data is being gathered on an ongoing basis, figures correct at time of publishing

Donate now

89% felt less stressed, anxious or worried;
90% felt happier;
71% felt more positive about the future.