Estimated reading time:6 minutes, 6 seconds
Everybody has a story. Theatre technician Amy Daniels, 26, helps co-ordinate Canonbury Mutual Aid. All Islington’s Mutual Aid groups during the Covid-19 pandemic are listed at the end of this interview. Q&A with Nicola Baird
Amy Daniels from Canonbury Mutual Aid. The dog belongs to a Canonbury resident who is unable to leave their house during lockdown. (c) AD
What’s your job pre Covid-19?
I’m a theatre technician, lighting designer and production manager in Camden.
FOLLOW ISLINGTON FACES a new interview is published every week. If you’d like to become a voting member of the charity Islington Faces our trustees need you! Please send an email to islingtonfaces@gmail.com with your name and reason why you’d like to support Islington Faces. Thanks.
Where are you based?
I live in Canonbury! I moved here at the end of February, but I have long been a huge fan of Islington! I love the architecture! Upper Street! The tree lined streets! The green spaces! The people – especially the ones who are volunteering with us!
Canonbury Tower (c) Islington Faces
Amy Daniels’ favourite places in Islington
- Almeida Theatre – hands down one of the best theatres in London. Boundary-smashing work, a gorgeous building, high quality theatre-going experience and strong community outreach. I did one of their Youth Programs in 2015 and it was a blast.
- Ottolenghi – it’s a chain, but I love the food too much for it not to get a mention!
- Upper Street Hardware – I’m sure it’s not just me that could while away hours wondering around a hardware store, but even if it is, their lighting display in the front of the shop is just gorgeous. It always turns my head when I walk past!!
- New River Walk – a discovery since I moved here; in fact, I first walked it when I was leafletting for CMA! A beautiful little nature reserve – so tranquil and gorgeous.
- Mother Earth – I’m a sucker for a no-waste shop, and Mother Earth delivers the goods! You can get everything from spices to grains to dried fruits and cereals loose (dreamy!) and their staff are super lovely too!
====
Info from Canonbury Mutual Aid (c) CMA
What do you do at Canonbury Mutual Aid?
I’m one of the coordinators – my role specifically is managing the volunteers who run our phone line, as well as co-ordinating our group bank account and fundraising!
Canonbury Mutual Aid facebook banner. (c) CMA
How did you hear about it?
I think I heard about it on Facebook… I’m not quite a founding member but joined pretty early on!
What have you been doing?
We set up a helpline for people in need to contact if they need assistance with food shopping, prescription pick-ups, dog walking, help, advice, etc! We co-ordinate volunteers doing these tasks for people – we manage a group of over 160 volunteers! We have social media outreach and about 160 volunteers in our database. We have had 200 calls on our helpline, and email requests too! Most of what we do is grocery shops for people and quite a few prescription pick-ups, but we’ve also had some slightly more unique and wild requests! One volunteer helped a lady set up Zoom on her smartphone!
Does the Covid-19 pandemic remind you of anything?
A living nightmare? I don’t know. I guess if I’d lived through a World War, I might compare it to that, in that there’s this heightened sense of chaos and people are incredibly at risk without even having to do anything that risky… Just going to a shop is taking your life into your hands! And, of course, the community response and unity.
- Contact Canonbury Mutual Aid to volunteer or help using the new email (22 April 2020) hello@canonburymutualaid.comand the helpline number is 020 3026 4438
- Instagram is @canonburymutualaid
- Web: anonbury.coronacorps.com
TAKEN FROM FACEBOOK SO YOU CAN FIND YOUR NEAREST Islington COVID-19 Mutual Aid Group
Over to you
If you’d like to nominate someone to be interviewed who grew up, lives or works in Islington, or suggest yourself, please let me know, via nicolabaird dot green at gmail dot com. If you enjoyed this post you might like to look at the A-Z  index, or search by interviewee’s roles or Meet Islingtonians to find friends, neighbours and inspiration. Thanks for stopping by. Nicola
