Family to open cafe in memory of crash victim
LABOUR OF LOVE AS RUNDOWN BUILDING IS RESTORED IN TRIBUTE TO TEENAGE MOTORCYCLIST
THE family of a teenager who died in a motorbike accident are opening a cafe in his memory.
Connor Pullen was just 17 when he came off his bike in Enderby in April 2009. Yesterday would have been his 30th birthday.
His mum, Annabelle, and her brother, Pete, marked the day with a special opening event at Connor’s in Spring Lane, Wigston, for family and friends.
It will open to the public tomorrow, with Pete running the cafe, helped by Connor’s younger sister, Olivia, 16, who was just four when her brother died.
The cafe is on the site of the former El Cafe, which shut a couple of years ago and had fallen into disrepair.
Pete, 57, has spent the past few months renovating the building to open it as a cafe in memory of his nephew.
Annabelle, 51, who is the office manager at Danemill Primary School, Enderby, said the cafe would have a picture of Connor in the main dining area as a constant reminder of her son.
She said: “Since Connor died we’ve done quite a few things in his memory. A few of us have climbed Snowdon and we’ve had all kinds of fund-raisers over the years - it has helped us with the grief.
“We’ve raised money for charities including the Laura Centre, in Leicester, where Olivia and I have both had grief counselling.
“Olivia was only four when Connor died so it was difficult for her. She’s been back to The Laura Centre in recent years to help her.
“The cafe has been an idea for quite a while now. Pete was made redundant late last year, so it was an opportunity to make the cafe a reality.
“He’ll run it as a business with Olivia’s help. She’s doing bakery and patisserie at college and hopefully when she’s older she can take it over.”
The cafe has become a labour of love for Pete and he has transformed the building, which had been quite badly vandalised over the years since it became vacant.
Annabelle said: “It was pretty run-down but he’s been working on it since November and it’s looking very nice.
“It was quite emotional when he went to pick up the ‘Connor’s Cafe’ sign the other day.”