Honour for Cardinal Hume Centre's longest serving volunteer

Ted Neville

Mr Ted Neville, 88, has been awarded the British Empire Medal in the Queen’s New Years Honours List. Ted became a volunteer at the Cardinal Hume Centre in 1996 taking on the running of the onsite Charity Shop following retirement as a civil servant at the Treasury and prior to that, a long stint in the Army.

In the ensuing 16 years, Ted became a very well known figure to many people in Victoria from supporters donating clothes and bric-a-brac, to local tradespeople, as well as his regular customers. He came in without fail for five days a week, raising over £350,000 for the Centre. Ill health forced him to retire in August 2010 but to this day, people still come into the shop asking after him.

“I am delighted that Ted’s long service and contribution have been recognised in such a tangible way” said Cathy Corcoran, Chief Executive of the Cardinal Hume Centre.

“Although not a Catholic himself, Ted’s hero was Cardinal Hume which is why he chose to work for us. I think many people knew Ted and the shop much better than they knew the Centre itself. I suspect this was because of his wonderfully eccentric pricing policies and also his generous heart, especially to people in real need!”

For more information on the Cardinal Hume Centre see: www.cardinalhumecentre.org.uk/