2 July 2020

YMCA Exeter surprised residents and business owners in Exeter last week with random acts of socially-distanced kindness. 

Free bags of chocolate, posies of flowers and drink vouchers sprang up attached to railings and trees across the city in a bid to put a smile on the faces of people coming out of lockdown.

Sticking carefully to government guidelines on social distancing, staff and residents at YMCA Exeter busied themselves creating beautiful flower posies supplied by local business, Frogwell Flowers. Killerton House donated over 700 Cadbury Easter eggs left over from Easter eggs hunts that were unable to take place due to the pandemic.

Over 60 free drink vouchers for Crankhouse and Zuki’s were given out, encouraging residents in Exeter to start supporting their local businesses again.

Hilary Bush, our Events and Partnerships Coordinator says: “This week has been tremendous. We’ve connected with people all over the city and put smiles on the faces of Exeter residents, visitors to the city, homeless people, food bank managers and our own YMCA Exeter residents. In this unprecedented season, random acts of kindness are a wonderful way to brighten up people’s days.”

Photo courtesy of @townhouse_exeter (Instagram)

Social media was buzzing with photos of the three days with local business owners, Townhouse B&B sharing their thoughts: “We’re feeling the joy on this gorgeous summer evening in Devon. Our lovely neighbours @ymcaexeter have been flower-bombing the local businesses with little bundles of joy. Just one reason to love Exeter – the people!”

YMCA Exeter has been supporting the local community since 1846. Even in this season of lockdown and social-distancing, YMCA Exeter is committed to reaching out and supporting young people and our wider community.