“You know what I would have done today if I didn’t come here? Just been stuck on my own in the house all day.”

Those are the words of “a gentle 83-year-old” at a recent ‘coffee-stop’ to Dalia Kaufman who manages The Fed’s Volunteer Services Team, which runs these wonderful monthly get-togethers in north and south Manchester.

Dalia was stopped in her tracks: “I was reminded – even after 15 years of running coffee-stops – of just how vital they are to people. We humans are sociable beings. We need other people – and did you know – our bodies work better when we’re not alone?”

The Fed is addressing a basic human need – as basic as food to eat and air to breathe by hosting up to 50 people a month in North Manchester, and up to 25 in South Manchester, and the people who go along often remark on how much pleasure they get from seeing old friends and making new ones.

Feedback from clients who attended last week’s coffee-stop at Maccabi in north Manchester again spoke volumes about the massive positive impact of this Fed service on people’s wellbeing. Have a read here of what a four people wrote about the afternoon:

“I was a little nervous as this is my first coffee-stop, but I am so pleased I came. Nice company and lovely to come out and chat to friendly people.”

“I like EVERYTHING about the coffee-stops, good atmosphere and vibrant!!!”

“Perfect to meet old and new friends. Nice afternoon, especially the entertainment.”

“The friendliness of the volunteers makes me feel at home.”

The entertainment by the way was provided by singer/actress Debbie Hilton with volunteers helping to ferry people to and from the event, preparing and serving refreshments, dancing with and chatting to people.

And it was the final coffee-stop for volunteer coordinator, Tsipi Khan, who has been working with the team for nearly 28 years and is retiring in September to make a new life in Israel – from where she came 47 years ago. We will miss her terribly, as will all the people she has supported and the volunteers she has placed over the years, but the decision could not be more right for her, and we wish her everything good in this exciting new chapter in her life