Bus drivers accepting local Town Award

This evening I attended the annual meeting for Stroud Town, which the Town Council organises each year. It is very low key and mostly attended by the recipients of the various awards, which are presented for a variety of achievements. I arrived a little late, and John M., our Mayor was already speaking and asking the town councillors present to introduce themselves. As I walked in, rather bedraggled from the wind and rain, he announced my entry and everyone turned around to have a look! I did manage to speak my piece about what the committee that I chair hopes to achieve this year.

I had grabbed my camera when I left home, on the off chance of a blip, so I took some pictures of the recipients just in case. There was a photographer taking official pictures who had lots of suitable gear. I, on the other hand, struggled a bit when trying not to use flash in the rather large gallery room of the the town's Subscription Rooms.

I was rather taken by the man in the centre in the light jacket, who has a wonderful face. He is one of the bus drivers from the Cotswold Green Bus Company who had just won the Local Enterprise Award. This is a new category for innovative activity, which can include fundraising, charity work, social enterprise or business, that has brought benefits to Stroud.

They are a quite small independent company, based very near Stroud, but also serving a wide area of Gloucestershire. They have a very friendly manner and provide a proper, dare I say 'old-fashioned' local service, rather than being like their rivals, the multi-national businesses, which often have no feeling for a local area nor understand the needs of small communities widely spread out amongst valleys, river plains and hill tops. They are definitely a good thing, and I was delighted they had won, so I have blipped them.