Mayor of Hyndburn: Cllr Terry Hurn
It is with great pleasure that I accept the Mayoral duty for this coming year, and I want to extend a warm thanks to all for this privilege.
Cllr Abdul Khan will certainly be a tough act to follow. Having gone above and beyond in his mayoral duties, especially in the face of unprecedented events like the death of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the Coronation of King Charles III, he has set a wonderful example that I hope to continue this coming year. I would also like to congratulate him on the monies raised for his chosen charities, all of which are very worthy causes.
I could not have asked for a more pleasurable way of kickstarting the year with events including Haworth Art Gallery, the jewel in our crown, The Great Harwood Agricultural Show, which attracts visitors from across the UK and also the Accrington Food and Culture festival this past weekend that saw thousands of people attend.
These events take a lot to put on, but they are well worth it when you see so many smiling faces and feel Hyndburn’s strong sense of community. I look forward to many similar opportunities this coming year and I hope that everyone will join me at the many fantastic events that will be taking place around the borough. In June alone we have some wonderful events to look forward to on Accrington Town Square including the Eco Fest on Saturday 17 June, Connecting Cultures on Saturday 24 June and Accrington Carnival on Sunday 25 June.
One of my favourite facets of Hyndburn has always been the amazing people who make up the borough, and I look forward to meeting as much of the community as possible throughout my mayoral year. There are many wonderful community-led organisations that continue to grow in the area and I hope to learn more about all of the brilliant work they do on a day-to-day basis.
With that in mind, it was certainly difficult to decide which of the wonderful organisations and charities I would support this Mayoral year. I have chosen the following three charities, all of which do wonderful work and mean something to me personally.
These will be: Milly’s Smiles, a local group that works to support children newly diagnosed with a cancer-related illness, Jeffrey’s Battle with Battens Disease, a crowdfunded effort to help a little boy keep going despite his illness, and Accrington Stanley Women FC, who serve as an admirable source of female empowerment for all.
I know that Hyndburn will support both myself and Mayoress, my wife Jean Hurn, in doing what we can to help these worthy causes over the course of the next 12 months, with lots of events and fundraising activities already planned.
We are both humbled by this opportunity, having both thoroughly enjoyed our year as Deputy Mayor and Mayoress, and we pledge to work to the best of our abilities to serve the community in every way that we can.