Wokingham

A well-deserved floral thank you was awarded to Earley volunteer Heather Cresswell by the Wokingham district council’s chairman Cllr Iain Brown last Friday (November 25).

The Wokingham chairman presents an award after each main council meeting to a person, group or organisation that has given good service to the community. To mark the Wokingham council meeting in November, chairman Cllr Iain Brown presented flowers to Heather Cresswell during a special presentation on Friday.

Heather lost her daughter Julie to Multiple Sclerosis (MS) at the age of 32, after she had been diagnosed at the age of just 21. Heather and her husband Bill have been volunteering for their Wokingham local branch of the MS Society for some 13 years. Bill was one of the society’s hard working minibus drivers before he retired, as he was aged over 70 years old! He still spends a lot of his time helping as a volunteer.

Heather currently runs a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week telephone support service from her home in Earley. There is also an answerphone service if Heather is not available. The work is extremely rewarding and she spends time helping not just those with MS, but their friends and family who may also require support. Heather takes on average 30 to 40 calls a week from people affected by MS and also organises a special support group for those newly diagnosed with the disease.

The Reading, Wokingham and District Branch of the MS Society has some 350 members and up to 30 people regularly visit their drop in centre in Earley. The branch also owns a holiday chalet in Bournemouth which members can visit. Two of their volunteers are aged in their 80s and 90s and are still running the coffee shop. Members also take advantage of the computers available at the drop in centre.

The Reading, Wokingham and District Branch, which receives grant funding from both Wokingham District Council and Reading Borough Council for their drop-in centre, has also just won two national awards for its newsletter and also for the wide range of services it offers people with MS, their families and carers.

Wokingham District Council chairman Cllr Iain Brown said: “Heather provides an invaluable service for local multiple sclerosis sufferers and their family and friends. The telephone support service that she runs from her own home has helped many people over the years. For those who are newly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, it can be a worrying time and often people are not aware of who can help them. Heather’s support group goes a long way to do just that.

“It’s people like Heather that make such a difference to so many people in our district. She has volunteered so much of her time, along with her husband Bill, and I am delighted to present her with some flowers as a token of thanks and recognition on behalf of Wokingham District Council.”

Heather Cresswell said: “I was thrilled to receive the flowers from the chairman. They are absolutely beautiful. Many volunteers, like me, spend a great deal of their time working away from the public eye, so their work is often unnoticed. However, I am just part of a hardworking team and it is good to have recognition of the time and commitment we give, trying to improve the quality of life for people with MS and their families.”

Wokingham District Council