Tea is being used to bring a little peace of mind to Americans whose lives have been blighted by terrorism.

Pat Barki, right, and Pam Castle are helping boost a series of memorial tea parties

Cholsey businesswoman Mrs Barki, who was born in Yorkshire but grew up in Boston, bought tea cups and saucers at a sale at the Sue Ryder Home in Nettlebed.

She is sending them to America to help the Shelley A Marshall Foundation, which was set up in memory of a woman killed when a hijacked airliner smashed into the Pentagon on September 11, 2001.

Mrs Marshall loved tea and tea parties, so her husband Donncreated the foundation to provide tea parties for the elderly, with teenagers doing the serving.

He said sitting down and talking to each other over a cup of tea brought the generations together.

Mrs Barki, who runs a crafts business, said: "This is such a wonderful idea and such a gentle English way of beating these terrorists.

"The parties are very popular in America and I'd love to see them start up here.

"Taking tea used to be a real social occasion, but now we're far too busy to take the time to sit with each other.

"We need to slow down and take stock more, look into each other's faces and enjoy an hour over a tea cup."