Community award for long-serving volunteer
ONE of the longest-serving volunteers on The Rose of Hungerford has been honoured in the West Berkshire 2019 Community Champion Awards.
At a presentation ceremony at Shaw House in Newbury in January, Bob Alderman received a Highly Commended in the Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his exceptional dedication and hard work for the Kennet & Avon Canal Trust in general and two of their boats in particular.
His colleagues on The Rose of Hungerford nominated Bob and were delighted that his hard work and contribution had been recognised in this way.
The panel was extremely impressed that Bob had dedicated nearly 70 years of active work to the Kennet & Avon Canal Trust and had shown incredible commitment over the years. His willingness to help others, whether passengers or fellow volunteers, is clear and the panel felt that his voluntary work should be recognised and celebrated.
Bob grew up beside the canal on which his great-grandfather had worked and even swam in it as a child.
He helped the last commercial boat make its final voyage from Aldermaston to Newbury. He worked with John Gould to keep the canal open and so avoid the canal being declared closed.
Bob joined the K&A canal association at its inception in 1951 and has been a member ever since. He worked on the Jubilee trip boat in Newbury before moving to Hungerford and becoming part of The Rose of Hungerford volunteer team for nearly 30 years.
He is a regular crewman and helm and a vital member of the maintenance team. Bob is also an invaluable mentor to generations of volunteers and his calm and knowledgeable advice is invaluable to new crew members and helms. He is great company, unfailingly cheerful and helpful and a mine of information and stories about the canal and the boats and people on it.
The K&A canal provides a valuable amenity for all; it would be a dry, weed filled ditch had it not been for the many volunteers like Bob who worked for 30 years to restore and preserve the canal. The Rose of Hungerford brings tourists and income to Hungerford, and generates funding for the canalside buildings owned and managed by the trust (Newbury Wharf, Devizes Wharf, Crofton Pumping Station).
In 2019 The Rose carried more than 5000 passengers and raised £30,000 for the trust. Bob is not only one of the most frequent volunteers, he will often cheerfully and willingly fill in at short notice when needed.