When the TLC Teddies were relaunched throughout the Province five years ago a core part of our strategy was to build a close relationship with the many Hospitals that received them and their teams working in the Children’s Accident and Emergency.
It was hoped that over the years the hospital teams would recognise the support given by Durham Freemasons by the provision of Teddies to calm children in distress. We have so far provided over 113,000 of those little bears throughout the Province of Durham.
University Hospital of North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust have received over 13,000 distraction Teddies. They have become a core part of the Children’s Accident and Emergency Teams procedure for dealing with children in distress.
The Hospital were wishing to show their appreciation for the generosity of local Freemasons and invited The Provincial Grand Master John Paul Thompson, TLC Coordinator Duncan Maw and local Ambassador Mark Davies to attend the installation of the first plaque in the Province acknowledging our support. It is now prominently displayed at the A & E Reception desk as can be seen in the photographs.
After the plaque was put in place, Nicola Jones, one of the units Paediatric HCA’s, also went onto the hospitals social media feed to highlight the plaque and to acknowledge the support given by local freemasons.
As John Thompson stated, the provision of the teddies and our close working relationship with local hospitals is a shining example of how local Freemasons can provide support and be recognised as a force for good in our local communities. I hope that we will see more plaques displayed in our local hospitals acknowledging our involvement.
Local TLC Ambassador Mark Davies remarked anyone who has had a young family member receive one of these little bears at a time of distress will instantly recognise how valuable they are and how well thought of by the recipients. The time given by the team at UHNTAND today clearly shows how valued the Teddies are.
TLC Coordinator Duncan Maw stated it costs approximately £15,000 per year to supply Teddies throughout the Province and we would like to thank all the Brethren for their ongoing generosity. He also expressed his gratitude to the TLC team for their continued hard work in ensuring the A&E’s throughout the Province are well stocked with supplies of the TLC Teddies.
