On April 15th, a large group of volunteers and supporters gathered in brilliant sunshine to celebrate the official opening of Workaid's 'charity shop with a difference' by the Mayor of Chesham, Cllr Jane Bramwell to mark our 25th Anniversary.
 
Before cutting the ribbon, Cllr Bramwell thanked volunteers at the Old Boot Factory for their work restoring the building, "which is so much a part of Chesham's heritage" adding, "what you have done here is to bring the community together."
 
Bill Duperouzel, Chief Executive, explained:
"The shop will be a valuable source of income for Workaid; it is also proving to be very useful in attracting new volunteers and is a real window on the local community. None of this would have been possible without a lot of hard work."
 
The Workaid Shop stocks a variety of items including some of specialist interest, in addition to trade and horticultural tools, haberdashery, sewing machines, craft materials and much more. Workaid needs a continual supply of tools, workshop machines and equipment, sewing and knitting machines and horticultural tools for sending to projects as well as saleable items for the shop.
 
Reflecting on the history of Workaid, Chairman Peter Harper said: "This is an exciting chapter in the history of the charity. Each person who has contributed to the life of this wonderful organisation should be incredibly proud of what we have achieved. Workaid has grown to be a vibrant and ever-expanding organisation which provides a real lifeline to disadvantaged people."