Age is no barrier to caring for others in the community

Mary Pugsley has been nominated for her work with Hair@theAcademy salon at the Exeter Royal Academy for Deaf Education 14 years’ ago, providing education to workplace, tailor-made hairdressing and barbering qualifications for students. She has been nominated for a Community Hero award.

Learners predominantly are in care, homeless, seeking asylum from abuse, battled against drug/alcohol addiction or have a learning disability and, as a result, experience significant barriers to learning opportunities.

Hair@theAcademy has been successful in empowering and moving learners into employ- ment, achieving outstanding success rates with 93% of students going on to further education and/or employment.

Mary does more than teach her students hairdressing, she is like a second mother to them, taking time to sit and chat, building trust and a sense of belonging.

One of life’s natural carers, she listens carefully to their life stories without judgement, offering a safe environment and hope. She often buys clothes and food to help ease them through the door of this life changing journey, so they feel equal and a valued member of the group.

To have the love, support, protection and education from Mary and her dedicated team is life changing for them.

When they start many barely make eye contact, but with Mary’s encouragement, they gain a sense of achievement and leave with their heads held high.

In Exeter, Edna Cahill has also been awarded a DevonLive Special Recognition Honour.

At 94, age is no barrier for Edna who for many years has been preparing Christmas lunch for the Churches Together at AGE UK in Cowick Street. In 2014 Edna found lifting heavy dishes too much to cope with but still prepares all the veg for more than 40 people who would be alone on Christmas Day.

“I had a poorly husband for a long time and when he died, I felt somebody else must need me somewhere,” she said.

For 27 years Edna ran the Exeter Blood Donation sessions, finding venues and volunteering in handing out tea and biscuits.

She received Volunteer of the Year in 2015 from Blood Donors UK. In the past 18 years Edna has worked at Hospiscare making teas in the visitors café, knits for the charity shop.

Today she still volunteers her time for Hospiscare and when DevonLive got in touch, she had just returned from ironing 67 pillow cases.

“If I can do anything I will, it’s surprising what you can get out of volunteering. I’m sure if more people tried it, they would enjoy it. I first got involved when it opened because the man in charge knew me when I worked at the RD&E and drove me mad until I joined them.

“I’m in the coffee bar once a fortnight, and I go in on a Monday to do the ironing and if they’re short of anyone I’ll go and help out on the ward. I think I’m the oldest volunteer at Hospiscare. It’s a lovely place.”

Edna has also completed four charity abseils, her last one at the age of 90.

“It was blowing a gale,” she added. “Just as I was about to get my second foot off a gust of wind came up and blew me sideways.”