NELLIE KNOWS

Pulling together to help those in need

As I walked into my messy kitchen with crumbs, cups and chaos greeting me I thought of those families who have nothing following the fire at Grenfell Tower and suddenly it didn’t matter anymore, families who went to bed with hope for the new day had their lives changed for ever.

I watched the news unfold during the day until I couldn’t watch or hear anything further and with a heavy heart I thought of what we could do.

Which is why I rang Michelle of Brown Bear Bakery at Holme Grange Craft Village and asked if we could use her facility to store clothes, toys and toiletries for the families, which of course she agreed to. Then the lovely Kate from Vandalised with Love who is over at The Sanctuary Barn in Binfield said that people can drop stuff there. Within hours volunteers were sorting through donations that had made it to London and the call came out that for now the area was inundated with donations, but if you are having a clear out then do get in touch and we can direct you to the right place.

When push comes to shove we do know how to pull together and make a difference

I was delighted that people had voted in the Muddy Stilettos Awards and quite rightly Rococo in Bush Walk, Wokingham was awarded Best Jewellers. I used to go in there when I was a teenager buying jewellery for myself and other people, so to see it still as popular as it was 30 years ago is all credit to the fabulous team and their customer service.

Another winner was Barkham Beauty Room who I have known since they first opened and regularly enjoy a spot of pampering.

To see these two Wokingham businesses crowned the best shows that Wokingham is still open and does have something to offer. Go and see them, tell them I sent you and see for yourself what good customer service looks like.

Congratulations to Elizabeth …

At the weekend I heard that Elizabeth BurtonPhillips the founder of DrugFAM and author of Mum, Can You Lend Me Twenty Quid had been awarded an MBE. This exciting news follows the Queen’s Award for Excellence that the charity itself had won.

Elizabeth is really having an exciting year with awards and the amazing service at Westminster Abbey. The honest and raw account of what drugs did to Elizabeth’s family, together with how she used her experiences to help those whose lives have been affected by the disease just makes me so proud to know and love her.

… and to Rachel

I was also thrilled to see that Rachel Paterson the Wokingham Commissioner for Girl Guiding won a Civic Award in Winnersh. I’ve known Rachel since the age of 12 when we both arrived from different corners of the world at boarding school in Malvern and were thrown into a dormitory together, after school we went in opposite directions but met up again years later. I received the Civic Award five years ago when I left the Police and I couldn’t be more proud of my friend who has done so much for so many people.

And if you need an MoT

If your car is due its MoT then can I suggest you have a look at page 13. Citroemech is opening on Sunday, June 25 for a charity day in aid of Macmillan Cancer, MoTs are free for a charitable donation, they need to be booked in so don’t delay.

There will be a barbecue and cakes and all money raised will be going to the charity.

And finally the GCSEs are over!