Eastbourne female-run charity set to release anthology of covid stories

The WayfinderWoman Trust, a female-run and volunteer-led charity based in Eastbourne, will launch ‘Women in Lockdown’ on November 10.

A spokesperson for the trust, which was a 2021 recipient of The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, said, “When the UK entered lockdown in the spring of 2020, a call went out from The WayfinderWoman Trust for ordinary women’s voices to be heard so that they could feel supported, connected and valued.

“They asked women to communicate their hopes, fears and experiences of the pandemic so their stories could be told.”

Laura Murphy, trust founder, said, “Like all other charities and organisations, we were badly impacted by the pandemic. Many of our volunteers had to shield for months. Others became increasingly anxious and withdrawn. Women who had come to us for help previously were finding their confidence ebbing away.

“We knew that we had to do something, isolated though we all were, something that would bring our sisterhood together and stay true to our aim of being a mutually supporting community. The Women in Lockdown stories were born.”

The original plan was for 20–30 stories to be posted on the trust’s Facebook page, but when more than 100 stories were submitted from women around the world, WayfinderWoman felt the stories should be printed physically to ‘pay tribute to these women’s lives’.

The trust spokesperson said, “The 216-page volume contains a unique collection of stories, poems, diary entries, and artwork, sometimes poignant, sometimes humorous, and often uplifting.

“The ‘Women in Lockdown’ voices will not be forgotten but live on for future generations in this inspiring book.”

Women in Lockdown: Stories by and about women during Covid-19 (ISBN 978-1-8381022-1-0) will be available to purchase from November 10 on the WayfinderWoman website.

All proceeds from book sales will support the work of The WayfinderWoman Trust.