Category: News

Tamworth barber shop duo plan fund-raising to help prostate cancer charity

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Two friends who have gone into business together to open a new barber’s shop in Tamworth’s Ankerside Shopping centre are aiming to raise funds for prostate cancer awareness.

Sally Tunnicliffe and Shaun Williams have opened the doors on their Hair Razor business inside the busy shopping mall, offering hair styling for gents and boys.

During May they are joining forces with Prostate Cancer UK’s Men United campaign, which is spearheaded by comedian and musician Bill Bailey. They will be donating 10% of the bill for every hair styling for a fortnight in May to the charity.

Sally has previously raised hundreds of pounds for Cancer Research with Race for Life. Now she’s decided to use her business to help raise the profile of prostate cancer,  which kills 10,000 men a year in the UK – many of whom could have been treated if the disease was spotted earlier.

“I was shocked when I discovered that prostate cancer is the most common form in men, but too often it’s not discussed by blokes. It is under-funded, while the availability of treatment can also vary,” said Sally.

Shaun, 27,  from Belgrave in Tamworth, added: “We will be stocking information in the shop, so men can chat about it if they wish while we’re cutting their hair, or just take it home to read. In addition, we will be donating 10% of every haircut, over £10, to the charity.”

The Hair Razor’s two-week long fund-raising effort, which kicks off on May 6,  has won the backing of Pete Barber, Ankerside Shopping Centre Manager.

“I am delighted to welcome Sally and Shaun to Ankerside Shopping Centre – Hair Razors will be a great addition to the range of stores we have here,” he said.

“Their fund-raising is admirable, and this is a cause that needs to be brought to the attention of every man, no matter their age. A little bit of knowledge could help somebody to spot early symptoms and ensure that instead of becoming one of the 10,000 deaths that occur each year, instead they have many more years to enjoy with their family and friends.”

Sally and Shaun previously ran their shop in Tamworth’s Market Street, but decided to move into larger premises in Ankerside when a unit became available, explained Sally, who has been a hairdresser for more than 24 years.

“This unit is bigger, plus we felt that it was in a more convenient location for our customers who often pop in while shopping in the town – it’s handy for parking as well.

“I started off doing both men and women’s hair dressing but after qualifying decided to concentrate on men’s, because I prefer them as customers. They don’t expect to walk out looking like Jennifer Ellison!” joked mum-of-two Sally, 39,

“We use traditional barbering methods, but both Shaun and I keep up with current trends. I think there is a big move back by men to using barbers, rather than unisex hair-dressing salons, because there is a  real difference in how the hair is cut. Programmes like Mad Men mean more men now want a traditional hair cut, but using modern products.

“Shaun has been working as a hairdresser for 10 years  and then we started working together about two years years ago – we get on very well together.”

Mark Bishop, Director of Fundraising at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “We’re thrilled that Sally Tunnicliffe and Shaun Williams from Hair Razors barbershop have decided to pledge 10% of every cut to help raise funds for Prostate Cancer UK. It is with support like this that we can help provide dedicated support and information to men and their families affected by prostate cancer and fund research to help fight the disease.”

“With over 3,700 men diagnosed with prostate cancer each year in the West Midlands and one man dying every hour in the UK, it is our aim to help more men survive the disease and enjoy a better quality of life.

“A huge thank you to Hair Razors barbershop for raising funds and joining the Men United movement.”

Ankerside Shopping  Centre, just off George St in Tamworth, is home to 60 stores, from fashion, health and beauty to services and food and drink, and has more than 700 parking spaces. More details on what’s happening at www.ankerside.co.uk

Thursday May 8th, 2014

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Heartfelt song to promote Purple Angels Dementia Awareness

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Musical staff from a care organisation have recorded a heartfelt song to promote a dementia awareness campaign.

The talented trio of Tracey Green, Chris Hodge, and Anita Moran from Pendine Park recorded the acoustic tune ‘Purple Angel’ at Vic Studios, Wrexham.

They’re aiming to sell the song on iTunes to raise money for the campaign.

Tracey, Enrichment Project Leader at Pendine Park in Wrexham, created the song with the poetry of Norman McNamara from Torquay who was diagnosed with dementia in 2008 at the age of 50.

He started the Purple Angels campaign, the aim of which is to raise awareness with  shops, businesses, and organisations by providing them with a simple training manual so they‘re better equipped to recognise the symptoms of dementia and respond accordingly.

Businesses that sign up to the scheme will then display posters and stickers with the Purple Angel logo to signify that they are dementia aware.

They plan to make Wrexham the first dementia-friendly town in Wales, with the ultimate aim of making Wales the first dementia-friendly country in the world.

The crusade has been backed to the hilt by Pendine Park proprietor, Mario Kreft MBE, and has already spread to more than shops in the Wrexham area.

It has even been backed by North Wales educational powerhouses Coleg Cambria and Glyndwr University.

The original idea for the song came from Ann Farr, the Manager of Smartcare, Pendine Park’s in-house training company.

Tracey, 31, said: “It’s making people aware of dementia using Norman’s words – that’s the key thing. It’s his story and we’ve just borrowed his words and put the music to it.

“Norman is a really inspiring poet. He’s written tons of poems and posted them on his website. Anita pointed me to them and said you’ve got to read these.

“I printed some of them off and laid them out on my bed. I got the guitar out, and pulled about two or three poems together, and stuck a chorus on and that’s how it was born.”

Anita Moran, Activities and Well-being Coordinator at Pendine Park’s Hillbury care home, is the first person in Wales to become an ambassador the worldwide Purple Angels campaign.

Anita was inspired to join the Purple Angels campaign, which has spread to 79 countries, by the experience of her late father Barry.

She said: “My dad was actually sectioned under the Mental Health Act, and that was the first we knew that he had dementia.

“None of us had realised, we just thought he was getting older. We realised about four years ago. He went into a home and because he’d had it so long he was getting to the later stages by the time we found out. He just hid it so well.”

The truth dawned on Anita the day her late mother, Jean, had a heart attack.

Anita said: “My sister phoned the ambulance. She went to the hospital, and the next morning my sister went round to see my dad and he couldn’t remember where he was.

“He couldn’t remember the paramedics being there. He thought my mum had left him.

“My sister went off and came back and he’d disappeared. To this day we don’t know how, he got from Buckley to Wrexham with no money.”

Anita is delighted with how the song has turned out.

She added: “I think the song is fantastic. Because it’s Norman’s story in his own words it’s got more meaning.”

Dementia is a common condition that affects about 800,000 people in the UK.

It is a syndrome associated with an on-going decline of the brain and its abilities. This includes problems with, memory loss, thinking speed, mental agility, language, understanding and judgement.

Chris Hodge, 28, who works as a teacher with Pendine Park’s in-house training company, Smartcare Teaching Care Centre, took on the project to produce, release and fund the track as well as playing secondary guitar.

He said: “I’m really happy with the way the song has turned out. I think Tracey’s voice works very well for it. It’s very soulful. You can tell there is a lot of passion and there is a lot of feeling behind what she is singing.

“Our campaign going round shops is trying to make sure that everybody understands what dementia is and how to respond appropriately when you recognise the signs and symptoms.”

Chris, who graduated from Glyndwr University with a degree in sound engineering in 2010, is now also a Purple Angel an ambassador. He is also translating the Purple Angel campaign material into Welsh.

He added: “We’re trying to remove that stigma, because Norman and the other people with dementia realise that it still exists.

“Norman even went into a shop once, and the person behind the counter thought that he was drunk because of symptoms. Norman explained to the shopkeeper that he has dementia, and the guy actually laughed in his face.”

To down load the song go to https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/purple-angel-dementia-aware/id840769940?i=840769980and to learn more about the Purple Angel campaign please visit www.purpleangel.org.uk or contact Anita Moran at Pendine Park on 01978 720242.

Wednesday May 7th, 2014

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Brave leukaemia survivor Delyth backs charity breakfast campaign

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A married mother who won a traumatic three-year battle with leukaemia is backing a charity breakfast campaign by a restaurant.

Brave Delyth Bolton, 44, who beat the disease as a child and went on to have a family, is supporting Frankie and Benny’s at Eagles Meadow in Wrexham in their efforts to raise money for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

The Italian-American restaurant has already raised over £1,000 through the culinary charity drive, and has a target of £4,000 for the year.

Mum of one Delyth, and her husband, Andrew, have a 12-year-old daughter called Freya.

But things looked bleak when Delyth was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia at the tender age of three.

Delyth recalled: “The side effects were terrible. There was losing my hair, throwing up, ulcers, that sort of thing.

“It really affected the immune system. I remember other children having mumps and I wasn’t allowed to go anywhere near them, and play with them, so there was a lot of isolation at the time when I was going through a lot of the treatment.

“I had chemotherapy and radiotherapy and numerous drugs. I didn’t know any different. At that age you don’t realise.”

Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research is dedicated to improving the lives of patients with all types of blood cancer, including leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

Peter Cross, the Manager of Frankie and Benny’s at Eagles Meadow, said: “Every year Leukaemia  and Lymphoma Research prevent more and more people from dying of blood cancer and their researchers are working as hard as they can to stop people developing this horrible disease in the first place.

“They also work to improve the lives of patients already suffering from cancers such as leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma because they believe everyone should be able to live their life to the full.”

Delyth, whose dedicated mum Mary raised more than £300,000 for the cause over the years with a group of pals, believes that the cash raised is making a huge difference.

She said: “I’m still alive because people have put money into research. People are donating phenomenal amounts these days.

“I think what they’re doing at Frankie and Benny’s at Eagles Meadow is fantastic.

“This money does make a real difference. Everything helps with leukaemia research and they’re always doing clinical trials and there are new advances with the treatments.

“Over the years it’s progressed massively because 25 years ago not many people would have come through at the other end.

“I was one of the lucky ones, because now days the treatment can target the damaged cells.

“When I was going through my treatment it was targeting all of my cells.

“I didn’t know if I could have kids because of the treatment. It was a little bit of a miracle I had Freya and I was absolutely thrilled.

“They’d never had anyone who had recovered who had gone on to have children because in those days the survival rate was so low. The treatment has improved a lot since then. It’s a cause that’s really close to my heart. I had to have regular checks for years and I was only fully discharged two years ago.

Peter added: “Delyth’s story illustrated the importance of the cause. I’ve known her for years through the restaurants I’ve worked for in Wrexham, and it’s lovely to see her now bring the families in, and it’s absolutely marvellous.

“It just shows that there is hope for everybody. It’s a very important cause which is close to everybody’s heart.

“All of the money people spend at the charity breakfast gets donated straight away to Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research.

“People have supported it very enthusiastically, and because the money is being donated to charity they’ll do things like get an extra little side order.

“The money is going towards research and hopefully we can find a cure not too far down the road.”

Wednesday May 7th, 2014

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Life of Pie is just champion at Bodnant Welsh Food

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Butchers and bakers at a centre of excellence for Welsh food are celebrating after being voted Welsh champion pie-makers and winning a total of 15 major awards.

The team at Bodnant Welsh Food, in the Conwy Valley, beat 270 other contestants from around Wales to be named Welsh Champions in the Hot Eating Pie category.

Judges gave 99 out of a possible 100 to their Stilton and Steak Pie and their Pork Pie.

Headed up by Bodnant’s latest recruit, master butcher Tony Gibson, the team  also picked up a further 13 awards.

They also included Gold Awards for the Bodnant Lamb Cushions, Steak Melt Burgers, Pork and Pear Burgers, Chilli Bomb, Huntsman’s Pie and Pork, Wholegrain Mustard and Black Pudding Pie.

In addition, they won Silver Awards for the Bodnant Traditional Pork Sausage and the Lamb and Mint Burger.

If that wasn’t enough, the team also took Bronze Awards for the Bodnant Pork, Aberwen and Apricot Sausage and the latest addition to the sausage range – the Bodnant PLG Sausage.

Chris Morton, Managing Director of Bodnant Welsh Foods, said: “We were hoping to do reasonably well in the awards, though we knew the other competitors were of a  very high standard, and included some of the top names in Wales for pie-making, baking and butchery skills.

“So I was stunned but absolutely delighted when I realised that we had won a total of 15 awards – including two Welsh Champions. I am so proud of our butchers and bakers. We know they are very skilled and create great food – but it was a pleasure for the panel of judges to agree with us.”

However, Bodnant’s resident pie-man Peter Jones, who cooked up the winning creations, had to wait the good news from his colleagues – for he was fast asleep in bed when the Welsh Awards for Excellence in Meat Products were being handed out at Kinmel Hall, near Abergele.

The 45-year-old, who already has more than 50 Welsh, British and European titles to his name, starts his shift at midnight, cooking up 400 pies through the night, so they are oven fresh for customers.

When Bodnant’s shop opens for that day’s business, he’s usually heading back to his home in Conwy to spend time with his four-year-old daughter Sophie and his partner, a nurse.

But when it came to making the entries for the contest, he started his shift two hours early, and worked through the night to ensure the batch was perfect. The winning pies came out of the oven at Bodnant at 6am –and  less than12 hours later were being sampled by the panel of judges.

“Usually I like to make the pies the day before but this time it wasn’t possible,” said Pete.

“Stilton and Steak Pie is one of my favourites, I think it tastes so good because it marries a lovely cheese, which we sell in the shop, with great meat, such as the Welsh Black Beef from the butchery counter. Stewing steak is excellent value as it’s the trimmings from prime cuts of meat.

“I first started winning awards with this recipe in 1999, and since then I’ve won all sorts of awards. I joined Bodnant 18 months ago – on 12 October 2012, a good date to remember – and I decided to go back to a recipe I knew would work.”

Pete, who has been making pies since he started work after leaving Ysgol Aberconwy, Llandudno aged 16,  uses a mix of lard and vegetables shortening in his pastry mix, along with strong flours – and there’s not a soggy bottom in sight.

“I make six different types of pastry for my pies, plus a hot water paste for the raised pork pies, it’s important to get the pastry just right as well as the seasoning,” confided Pete.

He’s now setting his sights on picking up even more titles for Bodnant and aims to enter British and European contests. He’s is full of praise for Bodnant’s butchers and  bakery teams –  his fellow bakers are Jack Tarbuck and new recruit Andy Kelly plus pastry expert Daisy Hewitt.

“Bodnant are great, they just let us get on with making our breads, cakes and pies, and we enjoy working together even if the hours are bit unsociable – you get used to it after a while,” said Pete, who admits he also turns his hand to making bread and pastries.”

 

For more information go to www.bodnant-welshfood.co.uk

Wednesday May 7th, 2014

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