Tottenham Lock to Limehouse Basin

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The alarm went off at 6.15 because to-day was not only the last day of our walk; we had to meet with Siobhaun from Bow Food Bank at 10’oclock at Hackney Marsh Recreation Centre- and at 12.30 at Lime House Basin we were to meet with Jim Fitzgerald, MP for Lime House Basin.

7 o’clock saw us walking briskly toward the multi-storey carpark, in a shopping mall twenty minutes from the hotel we had stayed at that night. John was carrying Kiwi’s bed rolled up and our overnight bag and I had my rucksack with Kiwi on a lead.

A kindly man wished us well and I realised that he too thought we were homeless.

But we were on time to meet with Siobhaun who came on her cargo bike-usually her children were her cargo but to-day it was her Luton Food Bank hamper (which she loved).

We walked the river path together with the cargo bike until a friend came to take it to safe keeping for her and we continued our walk with a young Italian priest who had arrived in England the day before on a visit to improve his English. And we met up with Margaret from Central Beds Labour Party which completed our group to meet the MP.

Jim Fitzgerald was as good as his word- in fact even better as he took us all to an excellent café and treated us all to drinks and a delicious taster platter of food. He talked with us about food banks and we all enjoyed his company.

After he left us the young Italian priest showed us photographs of the food bank he volunteered with in Italy and asked if he could photograph my tee shirt because he loved my statement: No Child Should Go Hungry. He said he wanted all volunteers at his food bank to wear a tee shirt like mine. And with that, we said our goodbyes to each other.

And I know my memories of the River Lea will be with me, always.