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Bravo for Baxter!

Jackie Baxter, a Bromley Council staff member and borough resident, has been recognised in the New Year Honours List. Jackie, who works as the Environment Campaigns Officer, has been awarded a British Empire Medal in recognition of her work, particularly during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic when national lockdown restrictions were in place. Jackie led on matching volunteers with vulnerable and isolating residents who needed help during a stage of unprecedented national challenge. Between March 2020 and March 2021, Bromley Council had over 4,600 offers of help from local people willing to volunteer to support local residents and enable them to gain access to care during lockdown and restrictions of movement. Jackie worked tirelessly with more than 1,500 of these volunteers and supported more than 1,500 local people to get vital food supplies, essential prescriptions and access to a person to talk to or to walk their dogs. She said: “The most recent period of our lives has been immensely challenging for all of us. It was a great privilege to support residents during that time, and it is a huge honour to be recognised in this way.” Previously, Jackie has been recognised nationally for her pioneering work on how the council treats deceased cats that have sadly been found on the highway, by working to reunite them with their owners.

HEARD OF COMMUNITY HOUSE?

Community House is a vibrant resource and voluntary centre for the residents of Bromley. Established more than 20 years ago, and situated in the old Magistrates Court in South Street, it is home to a range of charities including Age UK, Citizens Advice, Kent Association for the Blind and Community Links. The high standards of professionalism benefit visitors and service providers alike. Why not pay them a visit and stop for a cuppa at South Street Café? Call 020 8315 2501 or see www.communityhousebromley.org.uk for more information.

At the age of 74, local historian Pam Preedy has just published her first book, Living Through the Great War; How The People of Bromley Faced The Challenges of War. Pam has always been interested in history, but her trigger to enter into print was a course she took with the Oxford Continuing Education department on local history. Pam said: “I had come to believe that as far as history went, Bromley was one of the most boring towns in Britain, as little of any historical significance happened here. I was wrong. The people of Bromley, as the ‘little people’ everywhere react to the great events of the time. When the Tudors were dabbling in religion and making great changes, people in Bromley were making their own decisions about what to do: stand up for their own religion and suffer the consequences, or ‘go with the flow’. “I became interested in Bromley and the Great War through the local paper, The Bromley & District Times. I had intended to research the men who had given their lives in the 1914-18 war and are recorded on the Bromley Memorial. I started looking through the paper and found references to lots of men volunteering to join up and fight. Instead of looking for the dead heroes, I created Excel spreadsheets of all the military men mentioned in the paper; weddings, deaths, awards of gallantry, letters etc, which are now entered onto my search site www.militaryancestors.co.uk (free and without adverts). This covers both wars, though I still have to complete 1945. During this research I naturally had to read the papers looking for servicemen to record, and in the process, I found lots of wonderful stories and information. This is the basis for my book and it can be read straight through or you can 'dip' in and out. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed writing it!” SUPPORTING LOCAL AUTHORS… You can find Pam’s book on Amazon – both hardback and via Kindle. If you’re a local author or know of one, email hello@lifeinmagazines.co.uk for the chance to be featured. 8 Life in... BROMLEY March 2022

community - NOTICEBOARD

OMGosh!

Pantomime audience members at the Churchill Theatre in Bromley helped to raise £12,867.94 for Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity (GOSH Charity) as part of the theatre’s annual Christmas charity bucket collection. Starring Lee Mead as Prince Harry of Holby and Bonnie Langford as The Fairy Lilac, Sleeping Beauty ran from 4th December 2021 – 2nd January 2022 and was watched by over 27,000 people across the show’s run.

Picture: Christy/Craig Sugden Photography

CHAIN REACTION

If there’s one impression that Strictly Come Dancing’s 2021 winner, Rose Ayling-Ellis, will leave us with (apart from her amazing dancing), it’s raising awareness about deafness and the deaf community. Bromley Chain’s mission is to support, sponsor, campaign, inform and raise deaf awareness in the borough, and the charity has recently awarded a Bursary for the two-year training of a teacher of the deaf at Darrick Wood School in Orpington. Get in touch to see how they can help by emailing info@bromleychain.org.uk or see www.bromleychain.org.uk

Help find a physio! Ramp up your retirement!

It’s no secret that staying active in retirement benefits both physical and mental health and it also offers an opportunity to discover new hobbies, talents and hidden skills. Cue in U3A Bromley, an organisation for people who are no longer working full time. The group offers the chance to pursue a diverse range of activities at very little cost in a social setting – both in faceto-face meetings and also online. From walking to talking, computing to gardening, philosophy to psychology - the choices are endless. Get in touch by emailing membershipsecretary@u3abromley.org.uk calling 020 8464 5920 or see www.u3abromley.org.uk

WISH GRANTED

JLinks Physiotherapy is seeking physiotherapists from all specialities who would like to work with them and continue a career in a thriving and friendly team. The company is made up of a small team of physiotherapists who visit people across the boroughs of Bromley, Bexley, Greenwich and Lewisham and Kent County. Contact Jo or Jayne at admin@jlinks.co.uk to hear more about the role.

If you were one of Hever Castle’s visitors over Christmas and made a donation when prebooking tickets online - congratulations! You’ve helped raise a total of £14,705.24 for Make a Wish charity, which grants life-changing wishes for critically ill children.

Feature on the Community Noticeboard!

Email hello@lifeinmagazines.co.uk A small fee applies - we have limited space for free charity listings.

Looking to volunteer?

Joshy’s Heart of Gold is seeking volunteers to join its team to help meet its new and exciting aims for 2022. The company’s founder, Victoria Battman, set up the charity in memory of her son Josh, who was sadly killed by an elderly unlicensed driver on Orpington’s Court Road. The charity helps families who have lost a child or young person with aftercare, including counselling. Going forward, they plan to provide a service for mental and financial wellbeing. If you can volunteer your time to help, visit joshysheartofgold.godaddysites.com/ volunteer

SMALL BUSINESS MARKETPLACE!

Start Up Bromley is hosting a Spring Marketplace on Saturday 19th March at Contingent Works in Elmfield Road. The free event will be open to both the public and other businesses to network and engage with the businesses who are showcasing their products and services – please go along to support them on the day between 11am – 4pm. For details contact the Start Up Bromley team on startupbromley@gll.org or visit www.better.org.uk/start-up-bromley

Earlier this year, Bromley Rotary Clubs held its 7th annual Youth Awards evening to recognise young people's outstanding contributions to the community. The Mayor of Bromley, Cllr Russell L Mellor, attended to present recognition certificates to children from various schools. They included Wafi Ali and Alfie Beston from St Olave’s Grammar School; Alfie Brown, Oliver Buck, Ayishia Green, Rebecca Hall, James Kennell, Josh Merchant and Abigail Muckle from Charles Darwin School; Elizabeth Czachowski-Celis, Lara Karabulut and Marley Succi from Bromley High School; Libby Davis, Jaylen Josephs and Ellie Mercer from Langley Park School for Boys; Vedish Gurung, Harris Academy Beckenham; Lauren Holliday from Farringtons School; Otis Marshall-Harris from Bishop Justus; Annabel Reid-Hudson and Chloe Tzanetis from Harris Girls’ Academy Bromley; Serena Strickland from The Ravensbourne School; and Archie Suggett from Hayes School. A huge congratulations to all those children.

The evening also saw cheques totalling over £18,000 presented to a range of charities including St Christopher's Hospice, St Vincent Paul Beckenham, The Royal National Lifeboat Association, The Maypole Project, The 23rd Scouts Bromley, CASPA and The Motor Neurone Disease Association.

The prize winners from Rotary's 2022 Youth Awards pictured with the Mayor of Bromley, Councillor Russell L Mellor, the Mayoress and members of Bromley Rotary Clubs.

Holistic eating & wellness

Zen out in the comfort of your own space with Naani Maa’s Kitchen and Power Talk. Learn how to incorporate mindfulness and gratitude into your daily routine and create wellness tea blends and wholesome food. The relaxation session, which incorporates meditative breathing, takes place on Wednesday 9th March from 6pm-8pm online and costs £75. To book call 07508-822019 or 07884-008190.