A YOUNGSTER has been collecting Easter eggs to donate to local care homes in and around her hometown.
Ellie-Mae Harker was inspired to raise eggs after her mum, Charlene James, saw a Facebook post from Barrington Lodge Care Home, in Bishop Auckland, asking for Easter egg donations.
The 11-year-old decided she wanted to help, and so far, she has collected just over 300 chocolate eggs from members of the public, some of which she bought with her own money.
The youngster's mum said: “She wants to raise as many as possible to donate to residents of the care homes to make them smile through these hard times- as they say, a little goes a long way.
“She originally wanted to get 50, but didn’t think she would get that many, and now she has over 300 eggs thanks to the kindness of local people.
“With having so many eggs now, I thought it would make more sense to split them with other care homes in the area.
“We’ve got a couple of care homes in mind, but we want to see how many eggs she raises in total before we decide how to split them.”
The youngster dropped off some of the Easter eggs to Barrington Lodge Care Home on Saturday, and staff members said that there were smiles all around.
Beth Robson, an activities coordinator at the home, said: “It is absolutely lovely what’s she’s done.
“When she dropped them off yesterday (Saturday) we showed the residents, and it made them really happy, they were full of smiles- it’s really going to help.
“Some of the eggs will go to raffle which will improve the activities that we can provide for the residents as well.
“The original post we put out was obviously because we can’t have family members come in how they normally would, so it’s really nice that they’re still managing to receive something.”
The youngster's mum added: “I’m really proud of her and how kind she is.
“She’s been amazing. She is so thoughtful to have come up with the idea- kindness goes a long way.
“Just a little gesture like this can mean so much. If people can donate even just one egg, I can go and collect them.
“There’s too many people to mention, but to everyone, Ellie and I would like to say a huge thank you. We are so grateful, and it is really appreciated.”
To help the youngster on her Easter egg mission, message Charlene James on Facebook.
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