Bradford 101 ages 60-69 on coronavirus pandemic

NEXT: AGES 70-79: 'The stars were as bright as when I was a child'

Sylvia Coleman, 60, retired BRI Nurse Of 39 Years, from Allerton

When it first happened, they were talking about calling people back to the NHS. My heart was saying ‘go on, you can still do something’, but my head was saying, ‘no don’t do it’. All my colleagues said ‘Please don’t do it’. I did feel guilty.

My eldest sister was on the wards with Covid-19. My family, friends and neighbours round here collected a lot of stuff. We were collecting things for the patients like toothpaste and deodorants, as well as biscuits and chocolates for the staff just to cheer them up. It made me feel a little bit better that we were doing something.

Dr Mahendra Patel, 61, leading Pharmacist/ University Of Bradford Professor, from Little Horton

During the pandemic, I have done extensive community outreach work involving the Black and Asian Minority Ethnic group – including Sikhs, Muslims and Hindus across the Yorkshire region – to spread greater awareness of the dangers of Covid-19 and its prevention. Culturally sensitive information was provided, compared to relying on just the generalised Government messaging, which could often be misunderstood and not adhered to.

John Murphy, 62, Bus Driver, from Horton Bank Top

‘Weird’ is a lame, but convenient description of the weeks since March 2020. I had three daughters off school, a son denied university lectures and exiled up in Newcastle. I was ‘lucky’ to be able to work continuously, though punctuated by just a two-week furlough. Home schooling was traumatic! I was gently chided with a police stop for an out of date MoT, innocently confused by the Government amnesty. Saddest of all was losing our beloved dog, Lola, to bone cancer. Days went by unnamed – just today and tomorrow would do.

Ishtiaq Ahmed, 63, Khidmat Centres General Manager, from Toller Lane

This was a very challenging time both personally and professionally. I had natural fears around my own health and that of my family, however this had to be balanced against my work in two community centres based in densely populated BAME areas with vulnerable communities. The pandemic for me has been the ultimate test of showing leadership, resilience and clarity of thinking when the whole Covid-19 pandemic has been so fluid and tumultuous. I am grateful for the support and innovation of my team in helping set up a food bank from the start of the pandemic and reaching out to our service users, so they are not abandoned in isolation.

Liz Robinson, 63, All Together Now Community Choir member, from Micklethwaite

At first everyone was feeling quite grief stricken by the thought of not doing any of our choir meetings. One of our members is very technical and he introduced us to Zoom. We had two or three a week. We had different themes for the sessions. All the choir activities have taken over the Covid time – All Together Now Zoom Choir is my second family! We’ve held choir party nights and different events. I’ve had the pleasure of choosing songs to sing. Fun, tears, laughter and support.

Karen Stansfield, 67, volunteer with the Talking Telegraph for 35 years, from Cullingworth

The pandemic has been and still is one of the busiest periods in my life since I retired. As chairwoman of the Talking Telegraph, the Bradford district’s talking newspaper for visually-impaired people, I have single-handedly been delivery depot registrar, administrator, sanitiser, copier, post lady, presenter and downloader, confidante to some listeners and seamstress to them all, having sewed masks for everyone. Meanwhile, a team of seven fantastic volunteers recorded news items from the T&A on their mobiles or laptops then emailed them to our volunteer technician for compilation. None of it could have happened without the team.

Dr Manoj Joshi DL, 68, District Governor for Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire at Rotary International and the chairman of governors at Bradford Academy

I was Rotary District Governor for Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire in 2019/20. That was a once in a lifetime opportunity. For the whole year I worked to make a difference locally and globally., I had to think of new ways due to Covid. I started attending events on Zoom, dog shows, cat shows, coffee mornings.The other bit was rising to the challenge of inequalities, vulnerable people, raising funds for hospices, food banks. Started planning for World Polio Day. I started growing the beard, dyeing it purple, I shaved off my 52 year old moustache, lots of Yorkshire lit purple for Polio. Communities got together. It was like during the war .

Sandra Corcoran, 69, Company Director, from Cullingworth

I never expected to be under house arrest – well that’s what it felt like at times. I was on my own as my husband was an essential worker keeping open Pennine Cycles bike shop. Luckily the weather was nice and I enjoyed the garden. FaceTime became the new norm of seeing my daughter and friends, as well as chatting over the fence with neighbours. My husband did all the shopping. Using local village deliveries was wonderful, and having takeaway delivered on Fridays. I did a bit of our business work, but was limited to what I could do at home.

NEXT: AGES 70-79: 'The stars were as bright as when I was a child'

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