The Town Mayor showed his appreciation to the hard work of four community stars at Aylesbury Town Council’s chamber.
The Town Mayor awarded Amy Scullard, Richard and Abigail Walker and Julie Mary Curran with a certificate of appreciation for all they have done for the community.
Amy Scullard created the Save Mix 96 Facebook group during lockdown after news of the station being taken over by Bauer Media’s Greatest Hits Radio. Now named ‘Our Mix | Mix 96 Remembered’, the group has amassed more than 4,000 members.
Despite best efforts from herself and fellow Save Mix 96 group members, the campaign result did not go their way. However, the encouraging community spirit Amy created was hugely appreciated and much needed at that time.
Amy said: “I feel honoured to have been invited to meet with the Town Mayor and for the campaign efforts to be recognised. The campaign may have been seen as unsuccessful, but it brought a large, fantastic group of passionate members of our community together and I hope that the established group can now us working together to continue some legacies that Mix 96 started.”
Abigail Walker started the Aylesbury Wombles after learning about the environment at school and wanted to do something about the amount of litter seen in Aylesbury. Since June 2020 herself and her dad, Richard Walker, who is also known as Head Womble, have organised over 100 Aylesbury Wombles litter picks and have even encouraged teenagers to do their bit of their community with their Wombleteens group. Collectively they have collected thousands of bags of litter.
Richard and Abigail said: “It’s not our mess but it is our town. It has been amazing to see how quickly the Wombles have grown. If we think back a year ago, there used to be three may be five regular people attending each litter pick and now we have over 20 and sometimes even over 30 people turn out at the weekends.”
Julie Mary Curran was also recognised by the Town Mayor after creating two Facebook groups, ‘Official Aylesbury “How Can I Help Site” and ‘Aylesbury Businesses “How We Can Help Now” during Covid-19’, in the early stages of the pandemic. “She hoped that by creating these online spaces it would be easier for individuals in need of assistance to reach and receive willing help from the community during lock down. These groups where essential for many people who needed support through the most difficult period. Together, the groups have over 3,800 active users which have helped to spread kindness and support across Aylesbury and are still a valuable asset to the community.
Julie said: “When I saw the business disappear in front of my eyes and people panicking about what is going on and where they would get food and other items from I felt I had to do something. I wanted to make sure that people didn’t feel isolated and bring the community together so we could all help each other in these unprecedented times. That’s why I started Official Aylesbury “How Can I Help Site” which has over 3200 members all helping each other.”
The Town Mayor, Cllr Mike Smith, said: “It is always a privilege to meet members of Aylesbury community who have made a positive impact within our town. Although the occasion was different due to social distancing being in place, it was a pleasure to meet and show appreciation for the selfless voluntary work of them all.”