Thank you for my recent awards!
I was very honoured to receive the Mayor of Great Torrington’s good citizen award for 2022 and The Voice Local Hero Fundraiser of the Year award recently. Thank you to those that nominated me, it’s not why I do it, but it was a lovely thing to receive!
Christmas Hamper Appeal 2021
Well that was emotional. I’ve always loved Christmas, here’s a little pic of me loving it nearly 30 years ago. It brings me so much joy to help other people have theirs.
I just want to start by saying thank you to everyone that contributed to this years Christmas Hamper Fund. I can’t believe we raised £7000 and provided a Christmas worth having to 250 struggling families across Devon. It’s taken me 3 very long days but I managed to get them all out in time.
A special thank you to Mark at Rotary Power Sweeping – SnapLok UK, Shaun at A2b chimney sweep, The Little Green Cracker Company, 18 to Life Tattoo studio, Boom Tingz Burgerz – Great Torrington, Taddiport Village Hall, At Your Service North Devon, all of whom are local business that made huge contributions to our total. Please support these local businesses by checking them out.
Thank you to Robert Ellis and Kane Worsnop for cycling the coast to coast with me and helping me fundraise so much.
Thanks to Pon who helped me deliver to Holsworthy yesterday, meaning I got home at 10pm instead of midnight.
Lastly, thank you to my ever supportive fiancé Hannah Slater Graphic Design for feeding me and welcoming me home with a warm smile every day. I wouldn’t be able to do what I do without your encouragement.
Salt Marsh Jetty Refurbishment 2021
During one of our regular strolls along the Tarka Trail, my fiancé Hannah and I noticed the Jetty that we loved to sit on and take in the beautiful estuary had been cordoned off and was falling apart. I know the jetty is enjoyed by many in our community so in September 2021 I fundraised for and got together a team to regenerate the Jetty that looks out over the salt marshes just off the Tarka Trail between Bideford Station and the Iron Bridge.
The fundraiser was a great success and with a group of volunteers and the help of councillor James Craigie we were able to reopen this beautiful spot to the public!
About me and past community fundraising
Hello to all of my wonderful customers and to those that might be looking for the right chimney sweep.
As most of you know, I’m HETAS and Sweep Safe Certified, fully insured and have nearly 15 years of experience in the industry. I also use some of the most advanced portable air cleaning technology available.
With that in mind, I know that sometimes it’s nice to know a little about the person you’re inviting into your home, so I thought I’d share a little about myself and the work I do within the community.
In my 20’s, as well as working for Mark Broadhead LTD and Kenwyn Chimneys and Stoves, I was the frontman of electro punk band, The Dead Betas. Travelling far and wide performing to thousands was a great experience, not only meeting people from all walks of life, but getting to go to festivals, meet my heroes and improve my organisational skills and my confidence in front of people.
For many years I had suffered with anxiety and that’s exactly why in 2017 I learnt how to ride a bike, with the intention of cycling to Rome for local mental health charities, Clarity and The Lions Barber Collective. My friend Andy and I finally pulled it off in April / May 2019, travelling 1800km and climbing the equivalent of Ben Nevis 10 times during the 30 day trip, raising a total of around £6000.
With a taste for fundraising, and the bitter taste of politics in the air post Brexit and General Election, I made the decision to do more within my community. I hated the way politics had created a division and wanted to try and bridge the gap. For Christmas 2019, I raised the funds in the local community to fund a brand new games console for the children’s hospice in Fremington. Not only did we raise enough for the console, but for all of the added extras too.
Shortly after Christmas the pandemic hit. Out of work and with my push biking experience in hand, I spent the next months volunteering, delivering food, prescriptions and shopping by bike to people in Bideford, Barnstaple, Torrington and surrounding areas. This not only helped the community but it helped me enormously, having something to do really aided my mental health and helped to keep me grounded.
As Christmas 2020 approached and the financial strain of lockdown started to become a harsh reality for many in our community, I knew I had to try and do something to help. I set up a fundraising campaign and an anonymous text system so that any family in need could text through an address and number of people with the promise that if we could meet the funding targets, I would deliver a cook at home Christmas Dinner and all of the trimmings including Christmas Crackers, family games, sweets and chocolates. Growing up, Christmas was so important to me that I couldn’t bare the thought of people going without. As a community, you helped me to raise £2500 to provide Christmas dinner for 115 families helping over 500 people have the Christmas we all deserve.
Christmas was so successful that I decided to do the same for Easter 2021 and we raised enough for me to purchase and deliver “hold your own Easter egg hunts” to 200 children across the county, bringing not just a little happiness, but a fun family activity to so many.
This community means the world to me and not only your custom but your support of all of my community endeavours has been amazing so thank you all! I look forward to the next project.
TKM Chimney Sweep 