Hastings foodbank volunteer named in Queen’s New Year’s Honours List

Sarah Hampton is to receive a British Empire Medal (BEM) for her services to the charity.

She was nominated by her friend Emma Starr.

Sarah said: “I first received an email telling me I’d been nominated and at first I thought it was a scam. But I realised it wasn’t. I had to email back to agree to accept the award and I had to keep quiet about it until December 30. Trying to keep quiet about it was really hard.

“I was stunned that Emma had gone to so much trouble. Bless her heart.”

Sarah has been helping Hastings Foodbank for more than seven years.

She added: “I love doing it. You get satisfaction knowing that you are really helping somebody else.

“I work as one of the volunteers, mainly packing up the orders, ready for people who have been referred, from a single person to a large family.

“I work three times a week at the foodbank and get there at 9am to get parcels ready. It’s incredibly busy now and need has increased since the pandemic started.

“It’s just such a humbling experience to be nominated. There are so many people who do so much to support others in this town.”

In nominating Sarah, Emma said in her citation that her friend was ‘selfless and tireless.”

She added: “Sarah has supported her local community, volunteering for Hastings Foodbank since June 1, 2013. Founded by local churches of all denominations and community groups, she has promoted their amazing work to stop local hunger in the community. She promotes this by giving talks at churches and organisations. Between April 2019 and September 2019 they have given away 823,145 emergency food parcels.

“As a volunteer she is a driving force behind the foodbank making a real difference to the life of people in crisis with her volunteering. She has set up foodbank collections within our office, as well as other areas. We now have two food bins that fill up fast and every two weeks she empties them and takes the goods to the warehouse.

“She once told me of a young couple whose circumstances had taken a dramatic change. They were forced to use the foodbank while their benefits were sorted. She could see their concern over providing for their baby as the foodbank did not have the formula milk they needed. She slipped a little money from her own pocket to them, allowing them to purchase the milk.”

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