Page 307 - She's One Crazy Lady!

we displayed hundreds of the Charity’s photographs, newspaper cuttings and our promotional material; we laid on a buffet (from Millie’s Catering firm who were opposite our office) and we had been to a local joke shop to buy ‘crazy’ colourful hats! Marilyn was in her element! She made sure all the dignitaries wore hats!
A new era!
How devastating it was when shortly after the opening and we were settled – we were burgled! “They” had got into our upstairs area by smashing windows downstairs in Gary’s store and came up our stairs. Every area had been trashed! Our computers had been taken, various items that we had as raffle prizes and... even a one pound coin that we had put into one of our new pin badge boxes as a ‘good luck’ token. (We never kept charity money in the office.) We were outraged and bitterly disappointed but the team soon rallied round and we were back in business – very thankful that we had invested in good insurance.
The following morning, with the story having made
headlines in the paper, a supporter of Crazy Hats
turned up at our doorstep – his name was ‘Pop’ and
in his between his fingers he held a £1.00 coin – to replace the one stolen, he said.
Let me tell you about ‘Pop’.
We first met Pop after he phoned me to see if I had a photograph of his daughter and her friends who had taken part on one of our earlier walks. I said I’d get back to him and having found the said photo, invited him to come and see us. He was so pleased... and told us his daughter had died from breast cancer, as had his wife and his mother-in-law (and later his sister!) Four women in his life – all dying from breast cancer!
Pop looked crestfallen and was very lonely – so we befriended him – ‘adopted’ him and he became our ‘errand boy’. He was retired so had all the time in the world and I believe Crazy Hats was a lifesaver for him, for he loved being involved and was always so reliable – he loved to eat with us too!
One Monday morning, I had just got to the office when the doorbell went. I ran downstairs and there stood Pop. He said nothing. I remarked he was up and about very early and that he looked upset. I asked if he was OK.
“Anniversary me duck.” (I felt like asking ‘which one’? but obviously didn’t.) I invited him upstairs so we could put the kettle on and have a cuppa. No sooner had we sat down when the doorbell went again. I ran down the stairs (we kept very fit by doing this and later invested in a stair lift – not just for us, but for the less able-bodied people who called in to see us and to help transport heavy bags and other items up
“Our computers had been taken, various items that we had as raffle prizes and... even a one pound coin that we had put into one of our new pin badge boxes as a ‘good luck’ token. ”
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