Zoom sessions a big win for SAFC fan Dave

Foundation of Light’s Extra Time Hub has been a lifeline for Sunderland supporter Dave Davison. During a tumultuous 18 months that saw communities cut-off from each other, the football club’s official charity focussed its attention on reconnecting those who found themselves socially isolated. Seventy-nine year-old Dave from Southwick was a regular at our walking football sessions and by his own admission just loved to ‘kick a ball about and have some craic with the lads’. However, lockdown restrictions meant the weekly sessions could no longer take place and saw Dave stuck at home, missing the chance to catch up with the friends he’d made at the Beacon of Light. Through a range of Zoom activities and telephone befriending calls, the team at the Foundation of Light reached out to older members of the community, in an effort to combat loneliness. “It was a nice opportunity to catch up,” Dave said about the weekly Zoom calls. “I enjoyed the ones on a Friday particularly, as that was everyone chatting about the matches and all football related; I like to get my two penneth in!” The Extra Time Hubs were set up in partnership with the EFL Trust and form part of the Foundation's Wear Together programme with SCS; during the pandemic it has supported over 80 participants, with  over 1,500 care packages getting delivered.