Volunteers

My wife Ann and I first discovered Burnby Hall Gardens in the 1980’s, purely by chance one day when out for a drive. It soon became a place for the family days out where we would feed the fish and have a picnic; days which hold precious family memories. We also used to bring my mum to the Gardens, which she loved and once said it was “a bit of heaven on earth”. My mother sadly passed away in June 1998 and in that year the Gardens were looking for volunteers. I told my wife, Ann that I would like to give a bit back to the Gardens as a “thank you” for all the pleasure  the Gardens had given to my mum.

I have travelled from Scarborough one day a week to work in the Gardens since then and I work as a gardener potting plants on, planting, pruning, lopping tree branches. clipping hedges and anything else that needs doing. I have even been known to dress up at Easter and Christmas!

Burnby Hall Gardens will always be a special place not just for me but my whole family. I sadly lost my wife Ann in September after 52 and half years of marriage. Volunteering in the Gardens has been a great help to me in the last few months since Ann passed away and I hope to carry on doing my bit for as long as I can and as long as the Gardens will put up with me.

I have recently retired from working in Adult Education supporting young people and adults to improve their English and maths skills to increase their opportunities in work and life. I was very excited about volunteering at Burnby Hall Gardens after picking up a leaflet explaining about the Heritage Lottery Funding they had been awarded.

I enjoy my own garden and have always been interested in researching different aspects of social history. However the first time I applied there were already too many volunteers!

In September 2017, I contacted Rachel and there was an opportunity to start volunteering.

This has given me a great opportunity to be part of an enthusiastic, supportive and knowledgeable team with new avenues of research opening up all the time. It also enables me continue to meet new people visiting the Gardens.

The volunteer team and staff that enable Burnby Hall Gardens to continue to be a treasured part of life in Pocklington.

Having recently retired and moved to Pocklington, I was looking for a voluntary role which would enable me to keep active, meet the public, make new friends, and do something worthwhile; and I have certainly found all of these in my role as a Heritage Lottery Volunteer.

The staff are so friendly and supportive, and as a member of the Event & Fundraising team, I am currently helping with two fundraising projects – a raffle and a local recipe cookbook.  I also help out on event days, and find working with the children in the crafts tent to be particularly enjoyable and rewarding.

I also love gardening, so spending time in the gardens at any time of year is a real bonus.