Meet the maker of Elsie the ELCAP Bear

In the run-up to the launch of our new branding, our Facebook page ran a series of posts featuring Elsie the ELCAP Bear.

Elsie provided clues about the branding and wore Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to keep her community safe, before unveiling ELCAP’s eye-catching new logo. But what’s the story behind the mystery bear?

We can now exclusively reveal that Elsie’s maker was Ann Drummond, a Support Practitioner from ELCAP’s Haddington team.

Telling the story behind her cute creation, Ann said:

“At the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, I needed to shield and was unable to go to work. I was bored sitting at home and felt like a fraud because I thought I should be working. I started knitting again when my daughter was pregnant and I was knitting stuff for her. I wanted to find ways of using up spare wool and found a pattern for a bear on the web.”

Paying tribute to the efforts of front-line staff during lockdown, Ann knitted postal worker, NHS and supermarket bears. A social care bear was a natural progression. As well as promoting the charity’s new logo, Elsie the ELCAP Bear reminded everyone that social care staff that have continued to provide key services since day one of the pandemic.

Ann explained the motivation behind making the bears and what she gained from the experience:

“I wanted to give something back. I think people appreciated my efforts and I got a lot of satisfaction as a result. It was the first time I’d lifted knitting needles in 30 years. It was something different to do and I quite like a challenge.”

Ann has worked for ELCAP since 2013. Her previous experience includes service with Baguette Express and the Trustee Savings Bank, as well as 26 years with the Mercat Hotel in Haddington.