Lighting the castle green for the Samaritans 70th anniversary

Monday, 30 October 2023 18:31

70 years of being there for anyone who needs someone Tamworth Castle will honour by lighting up green Taking place on 2 November

Tamworth Borough Council are honouring 70 years of the Samaritans by lighting the castle green on their anniversary date of 2 November.

Starting as a phone line 70 years ago, the charity Samaritans has evolved so much to achieve the countless ways it reaches and supports people from all communities today.

Samaritans’ purpose, to be there for people who are struggling to cope and in times of crisis, is as vital as ever. Sadly, more than 5,000 people in England take their own life each year and one in five adults say they have felt suicidal at some point in their lives. At Samaritans they answer a call for help every 10 seconds, and last year there wasn’t a single second when a Samaritan wasn’t on a call.
Samaritans’ volunteers offer their support day or night, for anyone who’s struggling to cope, who needs someone to listen without judgement or pressure. Samaritans is not only for the moment of crisis, but they also take action to prevent the crisis.

They offer people ways to cope and the skills to be there for others. They encourage, promote and celebrate those moments of connection between people that can save lives.

Every life lost to suicide is a tragedy, and Samaritans’ vision is that fewer people die by suicide

The charity revealed earlier this year that they’ve answered more than 134 million calls from people struggling to cope over the last 70 years. The lighting of the castle not only celebrates the 70 years of valuable work but is also a reminder of how vital Samaritans is and that it’s needed now more than ever before.

Councillor Matin Summers, Portfolio Holder for Environmental Health and Community Partnerships, said:”Lighting the castle green to honour such a significant milestone for the Samaritans, also helps to raise awareness of the lifesaving work Samaritans volunteers do, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

“Last year, Samaritans volunteers spent almost 1 million hours responding to calls for help. Lighting up our iconic monument is a small way we can thank the Samaritans for 70 years of being there for anyone who needs someone.

“We are proud as a council to support the Tamworth Samaritans branch through grant funding, to enable the continued outreach activity programme that helps some of our most vulnerable residents and offers support when it is most needed.”