Newgate Volunteer of the Year Awards
Sue Hall, archivist, welcomer, education team at Blackburn Cathedral
Sue came runner up in the individual category in our first Newgate Cathedral Volunteer Awards.
Our volunteer heroes … Sue Hall
Sue Hall loves her role. She loves collecting people’s stories. And she loves using the stories of Blackburn Cathedral to spark memories.
It’s a perk of her volunteering, a role she relishes since retiring as a teacher from a local secondary school where she spent her whole career.
Sue walked into the cathedral one day and started volunteering on the desk. But it wasn’t long before her lifelong love of history found her taking on the cathedral’s archive – which basically meant she was pushed into a room full of boxes and bin bags!
The cathedral was blessed in that it was gifted a museum-grade micro-storage system from a company that were overhauling their own systems and Sue has been carefully curating and cataloguing to tell the cathedral’s story.
‘An archivist in a small place like this means I can talk to people, I want their stories and it brings people in. They see a picture I post on social media, and it sparks something, a memory – and they bring me things, it’s wonderful,’ she added.
Like the member of the congregation who turned up on the day we visited with armfuls of stuff from the old Sunday School that used to run out of the cathedral.
Blackburn Cathedral celebrates its centenary next year and Sue is currently working on a timeline of people’s involvement in the building and finding its unique stories.
‘Blackburn Cathedral was built by ordinary people. Hundreds of people who saved their pennies in a special box in their living room to help build it.
‘The history of the parish is fascinating. It had such fierce independence. It did its own thing during the Civil War, when everyone was supporting the King, Blackburn supported Cromwell.
‘Blackburn did what Blackburn wanted to do.
‘There will be so many opportunities during the year to tell the stories of the building and the people who made it.
‘I can’t wait,’ she added.
Sue started volunteering three years ago and would recommend volunteering to everyone.
‘There is a whole team of us, it’s such a caring community. We do things together, tea parties, theatre etc.
‘Volunteering is such a wonderful experience it has rich benefits for everyone.
‘It has given me a new lease of life.’
If you’re interested in a volunteering role at one of our cathedrals, do get in touch with your nearest cathedral to find out what might be available. You won’t regret it!
