Some Ideas...

The official Random Acts of Kindness organisation has some fantastic ideas on how to get involved and incorporate acts of kindness into your everyday, from paying compliments to a work colleague to taking out your neighbours rubbish for them. 

Read their suggestions here, and try out some of them today. 

Naomi - Digital Marketing Executive - GIVING BLOOD

Where are you going to donate? I'm going to Newquay Sports Centre next week during work time – Celtic & Co are allowing me to take the time off paid which is a pretty great incentive. The ideal would be if we could arrange a van to visit Treloggan Industrial Estate where Celtic is based so those of us who are eligible could all get involved.

Is it your first time? Yes! It’s something I’ve always wanted to do but I’ve never found the time. The appointments get booked up so far in advance and I’ve always worried about fitting it in around work. I was talking to Clare (Trade & Catalogue Manager) after she went in November about how the process worked and she made it sound so easy, that I bit the bullet and booked an appointment. I hear there’s also a great selection of biscuits!

Why are you doing it? Apart from having an hour out of work on a Friday afternoon... ;) I realised that my only reason for not having done it before now was laziness. I’m not afraid of needles and the donation venue is a 2 minute drive away from Celtic HQ, I just needed to make the time to do it. Two of our colleagues have had blood transfusions in the last year, what might have happened to them if the blood wasn’t available doesn’t bear thinking about. Giving an hour out of my day to potentially save a life is a very easy trade.

Want to give blood? Click here to find out how.

Mark - Customer Service Advisor - HELPING THE ELDERLY

What's your story Mark? I used to talk to a old lady called Barbara on my morning dog walks. Every time she passed me with her own dog, we got chatting about her life. She lived on her own and over the following months she became ill with cancer, so I used to go and visit her at home as she had to give up her dog as she could no longer look after it. I used to take my Border Terrier - Riley with me to cheer her up. Sadly Barbara was told she needed an operation and as she had no way of getting to the hospital, I took her and went to visit her after her operation. She was amazingly brave and survived at home another year until she sadly passed away at the age of 86.

This just highlights that some people are alone and are in need of help, so stopping for a simple chat with someone whilst out on a walk can turn into a much needed friendship.

Felicity - Customer Services & Sales Manager - HELPING A STRANGER

What's your story Felicity? One day I was home alone and there was a frantic knock at the door. A rather stressed lady stood in my doorway who was lost and apparently stranded too. I invited her in and calmed her down, gave her my phone and made her a cup of tea while she waited to hear from her friend. I was heavily pregnant at the time so we got chatting about children. I think most people would help someone out who is lost and in need, but what stuck with me the most was the fact she was so thankful, I felt really good about helping her out. 

The Whitworths - Co-Founders - WEIGH IN + SNACK CHECK

Now, this title may sound a little harsh but I can assure you it comes from a good place. 

Our 2nd mother (as we fondly like to call her) - Kath, is extremely active, healthy and clean-eating, and we always look up to her for advice. She's keenly kept tabs on our snacking habits in the office, regularly offering healthy alternatives such as baking her own banana cake for our meetings to stop us reaching for the chocolate biscuits, as well as asking how our exercise is going. 

For us, and most likely the majority of people that work in any office environment, the lead up to Christmas got slightly out of hand with copious amounts of mince pies, chocolate and other snacks on offer. When we returned in the new year, everyone in the Celtic & Co marketing team were making resolutions, mostly to eat cleaner, do more exercise, cut down on alcohol and drink more water for example. So to cement people's intentions, Kath and Nick decided it was time to buy an electronic set of scales and set a weekly weigh in for people wanting to take part and keep a check on their weight, visceral fat and water balance.

So far, thanks to the Whitworth's kind gesture to help us all focus up on getting healthy, we've all seen a big change in snacking habits and a few of us have even lost weight just from not eating rubbish in the office. You and your work colleagues can do the same, join forces today, buy a set of electronic scales and set yourself targets and challenges each week. Its amazing what you can do with a bit of pressure added!

West Cornwall Hospital - Penzance

We were approached by a member of the West Cornwall Hospital staff via facebook just before Christmas, regarding our sheepskin offcuts. Ms Bushnell had the fantastic idea to use our waste product for patients suffering from pressure sores. Here's what she had to say...

"Hi, I work at West Cornwall Hospital in Penzance and I’m looking at ways to protect pressure areas in patients who sadly are in need of end of life care. I was wondering what you did with any off cuts of sheepskin that you have? I’m thinking of small pieces that could be placed under heels or elbows. There doesn’t appear to be any non synthetic affordable products available for this. Because of infection control issues they would have to be single use. I would greatly appreciate your reply. Thank you 😊"

Celtic & Co were thrilled to get involved and sent Ms Bushnell plenty of offcuts. We waited with anticipation and were so pleased to hear how our sheepskin had been used...

"Just to let you know that I’m slowly working my way through the huge bag of off cuts that you sent, cutting and shaping pieces to use. We’ve already tested heel and elbow pads and the patients love them! I need to work on some kind of holding strap but I’ve got some ideas. Thank you Celtic & Co!"

Click here to read more about our recycling efforts.