Continue to be overwhelmed by volunteers
MAYOR’S Christmas message
Becoming Mayor of Charnwood in May of this year was a great honour for me, but it has also proved to be a very humbling experience.
Coming from a background of volunteering I am aware of the benefits in volunteering for both the recipients and the volunteers, but I had no real concept of how much work was carried out in Charnwood by volunteers.
One of the first events I attended was to the Students’ Union Action Awards held at Loughborough University where I was amazed at the amount and level of work carried out in the Loughborough community by a network of volunteer student groups supported and encouraged by the university.
I continue to be overwhelmed and full of admiration for the many volunteer groups and individuals that work tirelessly towards making Charnwood a compassionate and caring place to live in.
Coun Seaton has highlighted the voluntary work of those who she has witnessed such as these people she met at honoured at the Charnwood Community Heroes 2019 awards.
Pictured, left to right: Sandie Hebblethwaite, Ellen Reeve, Jennie Langford, The Mayor of Charnwood, Coun Brenda Seaton, Dominic and Damian Harkin, Gerald Sessions and Mick Wells.
To accompany me this year as my consort is my big ‘sis’ the Mayoress, Helen Johnson.
Sharing this year with Helen has meant that we have spent time together as sisters without the distractions of being a wife, a mum, a grandma and in the case of Helen, a great grandma.
The charity we have chosen to support this year is Admiral Nurses, a part of Dementia UK which is aimed at providing trained nurses in Charnwood for dementia patients and their families.
There has been a great emphasise this year placed on environmental issues like single use plastics and many businesses in the borough are making efforts to reduce them where ever possible.
Charnwood council have also shown their commitment with a climate change motion aiming to make the Council carbon neutral by 2030.
They have also pledged to plant 100,000 trees over the next four years within the borough.
We are fast approaching the time of year when families come together to celebrate the festive season, whether that celebration is centred around Christian traditions or a time that can be set aside for visiting and spending quality time with family members.
Of course, over the Christmas period we are encouraged to show care and compassion for people less fortunate than ourselves, but I am mindful that this message should not only be for Christmas but rather should be embedded into our psyche as a way of life, for all our life.
We both wish all the people of Charnwood a very Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy New Year.
Coun Brenda Seaton Mayor of Charnwood