WELL what a year that was...
It’s been a pleasure to report that the strange and difficult challenges thrown up over the last 12 months, were met by impenetrable wall of dedicated volunteers and community leaders - who more than up to the challenge.
Superstars of the district received three British Empire Medals (BEM) and one Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE).
It would transpire that Bishopsteignton Parish Council was light years ahead of most major governments in forming its Emergency Plan that nominated ‘pandemic disease’ as a likely emergency to hit in the future.
The leader of the emergency plan at the council was said to have applied herself with courage and and a can-do attitude that saw the village work together seamlessly.
A Teignmouth councillor created a small army of cooks to deliver high-end luxury meals to the district’s vulnerable.
All the while running a foodbank whose volunteer workforce was severely diminished due to the need to self-isolate.
Another hit for Teignmouth... one dedicated fundraiser was awarded an MBE for raising tens of thousands of pounds for a number of well-deserved charities during the pandemic. The head-shaving, marathon running, cake selling superstar almost missed the email informing her of the award.
Bovey Primary School former pupil Lawrence James Wright, son of Margaret and the late Thornton James Wright, receives the MBE.
Lawrence went on to Exeter University and finally to work for the MOD based at Portsmouth. He is principal IT solution architect to Sopra Steria and received the award for services to defence science and technology.
One modest awardee chose to remain anonymous in the process. Making it five medals for the district. Not half bad! Any regular reader of these pages of the last 18 months will not find this surprising in the least.
All of the awardees expressed immense gratitude and even a degree of hesitation in accepting their awards. Owing mostly to the fact that so many people had done a great deal during the lockdowns, and furthermore, nothing would have been possible without this effort on the part of the whole community. Still though, it’s nice that some are given special recognition for their exceptional effort.
‘TOTALLY surprised’ was Teignmouth’s Claire Twitchin’s reaction on learning that she had received an MBE – even though she ignored the initial notifying email sent to her.
‘I saw an email in my inbox but didn’t pay any attention to it as first,’ said Claire.
‘When I eventually got round to opening it a few days later having decided it might be important my first reaction was Oh Wow!
‘To say I’m chuffed is an understatement.’
Claire has received her MBE for services to the community in Teignmouth, Devon particularly during Covid-19.
She has raised funds for small and large charities close to her heart, totalling over £20,000.
‘Recently I’ve been busy raising money for NHS scrubs in paediatric wards by printing a calendar of sunrises that I take every morning while out walking my dog and donating the money to the Facebook Sewing Scrub Army x Teignbridge and Torbay,’ Claire explained.
She is also involved with Teignmouth’s weekly Parkrun and a Facebook group called Community Matters, which focuses on giving people a voice and making a difference in the community in various ways.
Claire has also completed in numerous marathons, triathlons, hosted cake sales and a host of other activities and in 2016 she raised over £2,500 for Macmillan’s ‘Brave the Shave’ campaign by having her hair shaved.
In between her fundraising activities Claire manages to squeeze in a busy work schedule too. Until recently her full time role was as an Early Years Practitioner but she is now a teaching assistant at Mayfield School in Torquay catering for pupils with severe or profound learning difficulties.
Cllr David Cox was recognised for his immense efforts in helping others during the coronavirus lockdowns with a BEM.
David has been an advocate for a number of charities and support groups in the area - long before the pandemic hit. However, it was his efforts during crisis which have been especially commended.
At the height of the crisis, he set up a two-meals delivery service, dishing up more than 200 meals to residents at their homes in Teignmouth.
His meals-on-wheels plan wasn’t serving your average pub grub. With the help of former Newton town mayor, Richard Jenks (sou chef) and his talented son Chris Jenks (head chef), meals distributed to vulnerable people were more Michelin Star than microwave. An unexpected treat in uncertain times.
With some extra help from Cllr Dave Matthews, the team expanded their Sunday lunch service and even offered a meal on Christmas day.
‘That really blew me away’, said David. ‘We provided hot meals on Christmas day and had so many volunteers come forward that we had to turn some down.’
For years David has worked tirelessly for food bank charity, HITS. And the virus threw up some unique challenges in getting vulnerable mouths fed: While demand for food aid was increasing dramatically, many volunteers also had to shield.
Pleased though he was to learn that he had been nominated, David was initially reluctant to accept the award. During Covid, I was bowled over… in American disaster films, everyone turns on each other. But in reality, when things went bad, everyone become more generous, caring and considerate.’
‘CRISIS brings out the best in people’, as the old phrase goes…. This was certainly true in Bishopteignton during the pandemic as Elaine Cawthraw, 70, was awarded a BEM for her efforts in chairing an emergency support group for the village, one that had a possible pandemic firmly in mind.
Bishopsteignton Emergency Response Team, also known as: BERT has been a ‘crucial’ vocal point in coordinating the emergency response to Covid-19.
A small army of 160 volunteers divvied-up tasks such as regular checks on the vulnerable and prescription deliveries to residents in isolation.
Elaine, who serves as parish councillor, has been credited with running the service with excellent and decisive leadership, at a time when it was needed most.
Bishopsteignton, it would seem, was thinking farther ahead than most governments with their plan for an emergency group formulated in 2015, highlighting ‘pandemic illness’ as a plausible emergency to come.
‘Humbled’ and ‘honoured’ was how Elaine said she felt upon learning she would be honoured. ‘My face must have been a picture’, she explained.
Still reeling from the shock, she thanked her fellow BERT members for their support and hard work in producing the Emergency Plan.
She added: ‘Little did we know that our top identified risk, “pandemic illness”, would soon be hitting the world.
‘Success comes from teamwork and I am fortunate to be part of other inspiring teams; Bishopsteignton Scout Group, Bishopsteignton Healthy Living Group, Sustainable Bishop and the Memory Café... ‘I’m truly privileged to live in such a wonderful, caring village.’