Synergy’s Graveyard Shift!
As part of Synergy’s CSR drive, on Thursday 18th October a group of 6 Synergy staff visited Tower Hamlets Cemetery to help the Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park tidy up the graveyard.
As part of Synergy’s CSR drive, on Thursday 18th October a group of 6 Synergy staff visited Tower Hamlets Cemetery to help the Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park tidy up the graveyard. Tower Hamlets Cemetery was closed for burials in 1966 when it was bought by the Greater London Council and in 1986 the ownership of the cemetery was given to the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. The Friends of Tower Hamlets was set up in 1990 to promote, for the public benefit, the preservation, care and improvement of the cemetery as a place of historic and ecological interest and beauty and as a burial ground.
This was the third project undertaken by Synergy’s CSR team at Tower Hamlets Cemetery. The team was met by Ken Greenway, the local nature reserves officer, who, after a safety induction and training on the use of the tools, set the volunteers to work in a designated area to remove the ivy, deadwood and litter. The group were set a daunting task at first, considering the vast area they had to clear, but once they got stuck in they felt a huge amount of satisfaction by the amount they had cleared, and in the afternoon some of the team were given a break from the back-breaking heavy labour by planting crocus bulbs alongside the pathways.
Jessica Maldini who works in Supported Housing at Synergy said, “It was nice to be part of a team, helping to improve the environment. The work was very strenuous, but very rewarding and a great team building event. I particularly enjoyed creating a nice clear open space and also planting crocuses. I would recommend this to colleagues as a team bonding exercise”.
Jaimee Dave from the Social Care VMS team said: “Having never done anything like this before in my life (I’m not green fingered at all), I was pleasantly surprised at the rather invigorating, fulfilling experience I had. Hard work though it was, I went home with a nice warm glow, quite like the Ready Break Kid. I would definitely do this kind of thing again and didn’t quite realise how much fun it would actually be. Yes, my muscles were rather achy the next day but I took this as a sign that I had worked well, for a worthwhile cause. And as a dog lover, I made a few canine friends as well!”
Account Consultant Toby Kendall commented, “It was a wonderful day. I found it really satisfying clearing away the ivy to let sunlight into areas that hadn’t seen any for almost half a century. Ken was great again, amusing us with his love of bats, and the drinks afterwards were warmly received!”
The Synergy group is committed to CSR and encourages staff to take part in community-based activities.