Coun June Harrison
Mayor of Hyndburn
WELL it’s hard to believe that my Mayoral year has whizzed by so quickly and that now this truly wonderful, once in a lifetime year is almost over.
When I became Mayor back in May last year my Mayoress, Cllr Joyce Plummer, and I were both really looking forward to learning more about the businesses and organisations within the Borough and to meeting as many Hyndburn people as possible.
And I’m thrilled to say that’s exactly what we’ve done! What an honour and a privilege it’s been for us to meet lots and lots of Hyndburn folk, both individually and within organisations. We’ve been absolutely blown away to see all the hard work and time that so many people devote, often voluntarily, to making their neighbourhood a better place.
There have been so many highlights this year as Mayor and last year as Deputy Mayor. Too many to mention here, but a standout weekend was when we proudly dedicated Accrington’s Town Square to the memory of the Accrington Pals, to commemorate the bravery and sacrifice of the Pals and all those from the Borough who fell in the Great War. Also representing the Borough the day after in ‘Battle’s Over, a Nation’s Tribute’, on the anniversary of the centenary of the end of that dreadful conflict.
A huge part of being Mayor is about raising money for the Mayoral charities. So I must give a big shout out to my marvellous Mayoral Committee, who have worked their socks off throughout the year, planning and organising lots of events to raise money for my charities, with garden parties, barbecues, tombolas, ‘Come Dine With Me’ evenings, and, of course the biggest fundraising event of the year, my Mayoral Ball, an absolutely fantastic night. I’m delighted to tell you that we now know that we’ve raised around £14,000 for my Mayoral Charities, Play4Uz2, Derian House Children’s Hospice, the North West Air Ambulance, the Hyndburn branch of Macmillan Cancer Support and also Clayton Amateur Boxing Club. A huge thank you to everyone who has donated money over the year, to all the sponsors and all of you who have supported the various events and fundraisers. The kindness and generosity of Hyndburn people is just astonishing.
My family are always a great support, and I want to thank my husband Chris, our three sons and their wives; Christopher and Clare, Mark and Alex and Paul and Jayne, and, of course our four grandchildren, Archie, Charlie, William and Ciara who have all supported me so well throughout this special year.
I also want to say thanks to the Mayoral office staff and also to Jayne my attendant, who has been brilliant. I’m sure that brolly of hers has been put up more than ever this year as she battled the elements to try and keep us dry during a year of particularly wild Lancashire weather.
And last but not least I must say a huge thank you to my Mayoress, Cllr Joyce Plummer, a close friend of many years, and neighbouring Peel ward Councillor. Joyce has been a wonderful wing woman on my 12 month Mayoral odyssey, I couldn’t have done it without her.
I’ll soon be handing the Mayoral baton on to Cllr Kath Pratt, who will do an excellent job and is in for a magical year. I’ve always been proud to be part of Hyndburn and never more so than this year, it’s been amazing, thank you all so much.