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Happy Birthday, Home-Start Leeds 24th April 2008

Thursday 13th March saw Home-Start Leeds celebrate its 21st birthday in style, with a fantastic anniversary party in the beautiful Tiled Hall Cafe in Leeds Art Gallery. Trustees, families, volunteers and staff members all had the opportunity to catch up with one another, and our special evening was also the perfect time to celebrate and reminisce upon the amazing achievements that Home-Start Leeds has secured over the past two decades.

After a lovely introduction from Ann Pemberton, everybody was invited to have a bite to eat from the delicious buffet. We also had the chance to look at the birthday cake, which was generously given by Scarborough Building Society. The cake was iced with Home-Start Leeds’s new logo, and at the end of the party we all went home with a piece of the cake which tasted as good as it looked!

Two special guests made our evening even more exciting. Margaret Harrison CBE, who founded Home-Start 35 years ago and who is now the Life President of the charity, kindly came along and gave a very interesting and inspirational speech about her work, the importance of Home-Start, and the international success that our charity is now experiencing.

Kay Mellor, who is Patron of Home-Start Leeds, spent time talking to everybody and she also gave a wonderful speech, which reminded us all why Home-Start is such a worthwhile charity and how a little reassurance from a volunteer can go a long way for a family. After their speeches, Margaret and Kay were both presented with a beautiful bouquet of flowers to thank them for their dedication to the charity.

Towards the end of the evening, raffle tickets that had been given out when we had arrived at the party were clutched in eager hands, as everybody hoped to hear their number called. With help from some excited children the draw was made and the lucky winners had a choice of prizes, including boxes of chocolates, scented candles, and a chocolate fountain!

21 years has passed at an unbelievable speed, and Home-Start Leeds is already looking forward to another 21 years (and more!) of working with families and volunteers, and helping to make a difference.

As always, acknowledgements and our sincere thanks go to...

· Margaret Harrison CBE, for attending our party, but above all we would like to thank her for founding such a valuable charity, and for continuing to be such an inspiration to Home-Start Leeds as we carry on pursuing her vision.

· Kay Mellor, for her incredible support and dedication to her role as Patron of Home-Start Leeds.

· Scarborough Building Society for its generous contributions to our 21st anniversary party, particularly the wonderful invitations and the delicious cake.

· Adele and Karen for the beautiful flowers given to Margaret Harrison and Kay Mellor, and also for the balloons that made the Tiled Hall Cafe into the perfect party location.

· Trustees, families, volunteers and staff members who all play such an important role in making Home-Start Leeds the success that it is.