I’ve talked before about the shop being at the heart of village life, the guardian of lost things, and the place we turn to when we need to know something. Well, it’s been just that for me this month. Being a loyal Findonian, I went to the meeting discussing the future of our Wattle House. But when I got there, it was very obvious that either I’d got the wrong venue, the wrong date, or the wrong time. Both halls were a hive of activity, but not a ‘sitting down for a meeting’ sort of activity. Well, I knew exactly what to do; I’ve talked about it often enough; now it was time to put my words into action. And, of course, it was exactly the right thing to do. And I had a nice chat with our volunteers as a bonus!
I talk a lot about our wonderful Post Office. How lucky are we, to have a PO on our doorstep, and even open all day on Saturday and even Sunday morning! Well, we are now offering an EVRI service, so you can collect and drop off your packages here. Impressed? I hope so. We are constantly striving to make our excellent shop even better. Oh, and the Christmas stamps will go on sale on 3rd November. A traditional Nativity scene this year, I understand, getting back to the heart of Christmas.
Olivia, our newest employee, is settling in well. If you haven’t met her yet, do pop in on a Saturday afternoon and see her. Apparently, she is studying criminology… Could come in useful! We have been really impressed by her enthusiasm. Go for it, Olivia!
Findon is a multi-talented village. We have always known it, and the shop is a prime example of people with different talents all pulling together, using their particular skill to benefit Findon. Which leads me to mention a couple of gaps. Firstly, our Secretary is standing down soon. It’s a crucial role, and we are all very grateful to Richard Pratt for doing it so competently. Secondly, we are very keen to do the right thing for our employees, and from time to time could really benefit from a Human Resources consultant. If you have either of these skills and would be willing to help, please do let us know. We would be so grateful.
As a community shop, we try our best to serve Findon, and consider those around us. We are aware that some of our delivery drivers make some noise early in the morning, and that, particularly over the hot summer when we have had our windows open overnight, a few neighbours have been inconvenienced. We are so sorry. We are speaking to the businesses and drivers concerned, although it is very difficult to contact some. All we can say is how very sorry we are, and we are doing our utmost to ensure that nobody’s sleep is disrupted by shop business.
Jean Burden