Hot Buffet Treat for Leicester Libraries Volunteers

By Tichaona Manomano

The Lord Mayor of Leicester, Councillor Roger Blackmore and his wife the Lady Mayoress, held a hot buffet reception in honour of library volunteers on Tuesday 16th February 2010 at the Town hall in Leicester.  Those in attendance were volunteers drawn from different sections of the community.

Notable among them were volunteers from the NHS Trust and Citizens’ Eye Community Media Hub. The Community Media Hub had representatives from its various news agencies such as Senior Eye, HAT News, The 2 and The Wave newspaper that is written by young people.

In his speech, The Lord Mayor thanked everyone involved in different programmes for their selfless dedication to serving their city and community. He was proud of the fact that Leicester libraries’ community of volunteers represent the City’s cultural diversity.  Even more impressive was the involvement of young people which the Lord Mayor acknowledged when he said, “…I am amazed by the number of people in this room… especially the presence of children…”

Leicester libraries’ manager, Mr Michael Lewis thanked volunteers for their commitment and service which he and his staff were proud of.  He highlighted the fact that the Libraries would not otherwise be in a position to make a positive contribution to the community had it not been for the support that volunteers offer.

John Coster, the Managing editor of Citizens’ Eye Community Media, thanked volunteers from the organisation’s different agencies for promoting Leicester City through their voluntary work in partnership with Leicester Libraries.  He praised the working relationship between the Libraries and the Community Media Hub as being responsible for creating an enabling environment for volunteers to exploit their full potential.

Overall, the reception was a successful event which afforded everyone present the chance to mingle and enjoy the night. The Mayor and the Lady Mayoress took time to chat with invited guests who gleefully lined up for a photo with City’s first couple.

Tichaona Manomano, volunteer community reporter with HAT News, poses for a photo with the Lord Mayor.