Big-hearted bakers are bringing some early festive cheer to a much-loved hospice with the delivery of a mountain of mince pies.<\/p>\n
Long-term supporter Jones Village Bakery is giving 1,000 of the tasty Yule Tide treats to Nightingale House which provides vital services for people with life-limiting illnesses in Wrexham, Flintshire, east Denbighshire and Shropshire border towns.<\/p>\n
The company is ramping up production at its bakery in Minera to meet soaring demand for the traditional favourites in the run up to Christmas.<\/p>\n
The man in charge of \u201cOperation Mincemeat\u201d is pie room manager Kerry Wilson who has a personal reason for wanting to help the hospice.<\/p>\n
Kerry said:\u00a0\u201cI am very pleased we\u2019re supporting the hospice because a number of my family have been in Nightingale House, so it means a heck of a lot.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy uncle Gareth Williams was diagnosed with throat cancer. He was at home for a long time and in the end it got too much and he went to the hospice, and he didn\u2019t come home sadly.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a very emotional time for the family but it\u2019s a fantastic place, a really fantastic place and the care they provide is absolutely second to none.<\/p>\n
\u201cNightingale House is wonderful because it\u2019s not just the patient who is given support but the whole family. They do a really important job to help people during the most difficult time in their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also a cause that\u2019s close to the heart of production worker Mandy Roberts who\u2019s part of the team making the mince pies from a secret Village Bakery recipe that was developed and perfected more than 30 years ago.<\/p>\n
Mandy said: \u201cMy six year old granddaughter, Indie,\u00a0 was chosen to lead the hospice\u2019s recent lantern parade with Father Christmas and raised \u00a3600 in sponsorship.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe recently lost her Taid who died suddenly at the age of 62 and she\u2019s been having support from Jackie at the hospice – they have been wonderful with her, really marvellous.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Sarah Povey, the Corporate Partnerships Lead at Nightingale House, the donation of the mince pies was \u201cincredibly generous\u201d.<\/p>\n
She said: \u201cWe\u2019re very, very grateful to the Village Bakery. They\u2019ve been a wonderful supporter over the years, whether it\u2019s\u00a0 the Welsh Cakes they\u2019ve given for the Midnight Walk or their brilliant sausage rolls.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I must say the mince pies are pretty special. They\u2019re lovely and buttery and delicious and the team were absolutely thrilled when they heard that we had this opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sarah added: \u201cIt\u2019s costs just under \u00a35 million to run the hospice every year with just 18 per cent coming from statutory funding, so it\u2019s down to our wonderful corporate supporters and our incredible community to keep the hospice\u2019s doors open.\u201d<\/p>\n
Village Bakery CEO Robin Jones got his first taste of working in the bakery, putting the lids on the mince pies when he started helping out as a teenager.<\/p>\n
Robin said: \u201cWe haven\u2019t changed the recipe since then. It\u2019s one thing that\u2019s held steady throughout our history, the good old Village Bakery mince pie.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey haven\u2019t got all the fancy alcoholic fillings or whatever but they\u2019re a blooming good, traditional mince pie with perfect pastry and we\u2019re proud to make them and we\u2019re proud to be able to get behind the hospice..<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are incredibly lucky to have Nightingale House on our doorstep in Wrexham. What they do for the local community is fantastic, they go above and beyond.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe idea to donate the mince pies came from a member of staff and I just think it\u2019s brilliant.<\/p>\n
\u201cEverybody in the Wrexham area knows somebody who has used the services of Nightingale House and I think it\u2019s close to everybody\u2019s heart, so we\u2019re delighted to be able to spread a bit of Christmas joy.\u201d<\/p>\n