Mayoral Briefing: Cllr Paul Greenall looks ahead to 2013 in his regular diary for the Advertiser (03/01/13)

Jan 3 2013 by Our Correspondent, Ormskirk Advertiser

THE week before Christmas was hectic, but very enjoyable.

On Monday, December 17, I attended the Ormskirk School presentation evening.

This was a beautiful event staged in the equally beautiful Ormskirk Parish Church. Having visited Ormskirk School several times as Mayor, I have always been impressed by the high level of achievement their pupils display. This event was no exception and the pupils were frankly a credit to their School.

On Tuesday the 18th, Louise and I were presented with a copy of the Gideons Bible from two members of the Southport Gideons. This was a lovely gift that we both will treasure.

On Thursday the 20th Louise and I hosted a lunch time ‘thank you’ in the Mayor’s Parlour for staff at the Council.

These people help to provide a variety of services to us all and it was nice to thank them for what they do. Louise and I then dashed off to the Cafe Vista at Christ Church in Aughton. This is a magnificent place and well worth a visit, it is entirely staffed by volunteers.

The volunteer theme continued on Thursday night, when we all went to Hesketh to present Diamond Jubilee Medallions and Certificates of Appreciation. The recipients were people who had given up their time to contribute to their community.

My last Mayoral function of 2012 occurred on Christmas Day.

A few weeks ago I discovered that a group of volunteers at Digmoor Community Centre were giving up their Christmas Day to cook dinner for people less fortunate than ourselves.

I was so impressed by this, that I arranged a short visit to meet these remarkable volunteers.

Like one or two others in West Lancashire that day, these people went the extra mile to help others enjoy Christmas and as Mayor, it was a privilege to thank them for their generosity.

Thank God we have people like this in West Lancashire!