St Mark's Café Hub Volunteers Recognised with "Heart of the Community" Award

Yesterday, we were honoured to recognise the dedicated volunteers from St Mark’s Hub Café, with a ceremony that took place at Wigan Town Hall.

The Mayor of Wigan Borough, Cllr Debbie Parkinson, presented the recipients with a certificate, glass “Heart of the Community” award and engraved silver salver on behalf of the Douglas Ward Councillors.

After the presentation in the Town Hall Chamber, the awardees then enjoyed refreshments and a buffet lunch in the settings of the Mayor’s Parlour.

Since April 2016 when the café was founded, each of the volunteers have contributed to creating a warm, welcoming space that brings together the local community in Newtown in a variety of ways.

With “Mini Hubbubz”, they open up the church to offer fun, play, stories and songs in sessions for youngsters and their parents/ guardians.

Every November, the café hosts a meal following on from the Douglas Ward Remembrance Service event held at the nearby Alexandra Park Bowling Green. This is attended by many local residents and schoolchildren from St Mark’s Primary School. In hosting this meal, the volunteers allow people to come together to honour all those we have lost in conflict, and ensure that they are remembered by passing on this commemoration to the next generation.

At Easter and Christmastime, again the volunteers host community meals that fill up the café and ensure that the festive spirit is spread throughout the local area.

And finally, in the weekly café sessions, the volunteers serve delicious and affordable food during term times, offering a gathering place for people and helping to reduce loneliness and social isolation.

In all that they do, these wonderful volunteers meet people with a smile and treat them with a warmth that makes them feel at home. It is for these reasons that The Hub Café is such a special place and without them, this simply would not be possible. For your tireless work, we applaud you!

Sue, one of the café’s original volunteers, said: “A huge thank you to all the Douglas Ward Councillors for the Heart of the Community award which we had presented to us yesterday.

“We were all absolutely thrilled to be awarded with the beautiful plaque and certificate, but we were also delighted and humbled to hear the lovely speech from The Mayor, as well as Cllr Draper saying such lovely words about our team.

“You made us feel so very special and we had a day that none of us will ever forget and we want to thank you all from the bottom of our hearts. God bless you all and thank you for all the support you give us at St Mark’s Hub Café.”

Cllr Pat Draper said: “When I first met these lovely ladies in 2017 in St Mark's Church I was impressed. Since then, the services they provide have grown to providing a play group for young children to feeding the whole community on Wednesdays, which is a lifeline for many people of all ages.

“In 2022, when I was diagnosed with breast cancer, these wonderful ladies were a lifeline for me personally. They supported me all through my treatment they hold a special place for me.

“Without our volunteers, our communities could not function, so to all of the St Mark's Hub Café ladies, you deserve to be recognised with this award! For the work you do in the café and St Mark’s Church as a whole, I salute you.”