More than 13,000 shoe boxes collected following Afghanistan soldiers' appeal

Oct 29 2009 by Nick Moreton, Ormskirk Advertiser

More than 13,000 shoe boxes collected following troops appeal

KIND-HEARTED shoppers in Ormskirk have helped collect over 13,000 “comfort parcels” for soldiers in Afghanistan.

Their donations have helped Maghull resident Kathleen Welsh collect the shoe boxes full of gifts to be sent to “our boys” serving in the war-torn country.

Kathleen has spent the last 15 months putting together the packages after hearing an appeal on the radio last year.

After putting in a low-key request to fellow parishioners at St Gregory’s Church in Lydiate, 72-year-old Kathleen was quickly inundated with gifts from people wanting to help.

The retired cleaner and her husband Thomas are now the area’s main point of call for the appeal, regularly receiving donations from across the region, including shops like B&M Bargains, in Ormskirk.

Kathleen said: “Everyone in Maghull knows me now as the person to take stuff to – my house even has a signpost on it telling people it’s a drop-off place.

“We basically collect everything here for the British Legion in Halton to box up ready to be sent out to the troops.

“It originally started when I put leaflets in the church, but it just snowballed, and people started bringing loads of stuff – we got that many people coming to my house the doorbell fell off!