Anna Redshaw’s ‘Blue Sunday’ Tea Party For M.E. in aid of various ME charities (including ME Research UK) will be held on Sunday 19th May 2024. Since its launch in 2013, the initiative has raised over £100,000 for charities.
As Anna explains
On Sunday 19th May, people from all over the world will meet up online to chat and leave comments on each other’s posts. While doing so they’ll be enjoying tea and cake (or whatever their delicate digestive systems can manage) and donating what they can to M.E. charities and causes.
We are so often excluded from events because our symptoms can make it so difficult for us to leave the house, let alone spend an hour or two at an event. That’s why the Tea Party For M.E. has always had an online/virtual element running alongside any in-person tea parties.
The premise is simple.
- Wear something blue (pyjamas count!)
- Dig out your best cups and saucers
- Bake or buy your favourite cake
- Post a photo of you little tea party set-up to social media
- Invite your family and friends to enjoy tea and cake with you, in person or via video call
- Donate the price you’d pay in a café
- Connect with others online who are doing the same, by commenting on their photos and posts
- Feel a part of the in-person tea party as Anna uploads photos and videos from the event she host every ‘Blue Sunday’.
Ways people with ME have joined in in previous years:
- Ensuring they have their favourite packet of biscuits in their bedside snack drawer
- Hosting a video call with their family, friends, or members of the M.E. community
- Inviting friends over for an in person, Tea Party For M.E. often celebrated in their bedroom
- Liking and engaging with other peoples posts on social media to feel part of others, blue Sunday celebrations
- Hanging blue decorations in their bedroom
- Holding bake sales at work
You can donate to ME Research UK directly via JustGiving
On 19th May 2024, Isaac is hosting an online concert for Blue Sunday – Tea Party for M.E., in aid of ME Research UK and Smile for ME. Isaac, who has a sister with severe ME, mentions that the concert will “feature a wide range of performances from amazing musicians and performers” and there will be “closed captions throughout and no flashing lights to make this event as inclusive as possible”. To reserve a spot: https://bit.ly/3VTGMja
