Today’s Pride in Oldham nominees: Cayak Club
Reporter: Dawn Eckersley
Date published: 31 July 2008

SELFLESS . . . young members of the Cayak Club
COMMUNITY clean ups, litter picks, musical parades — there is nothing the members of the Cayak Club won’t do for their local community.
And the youngsters’ pride and dedication to the Alt Estate has earned them a Pride in Oldham Award nomination.
The three-year-old club, which stands for Community And Youth Activities Klub, is run by a team of eight volunteers who all live near by.
Every Tuesday and Friday evening a group of around 35 children and teenagers take part in a range of arts and crafts, games and sports.
Members take part in the annual Festival of Diversity with a dragon parade and they are currently practising for a community performance of “The Wizard of Oz”.
The club also works with Bright Sparks children’s club and ARC, a youth club for teenagers, to organise bigger community projects.
But the biggest part of the club is community action and members work with Groundwork to carry out a number of tasks to benefit Alt residents.
Volunteer Dawn Hindley said: “The Alt Estate has a bad reputation but these children prove that there is plenty of goodness in the area and they really are selfless.
“They always want to do things that benefit others rather than themselves and can’t wait to get stuck into clearing-up the gardens of pensioners and disabled people.
“The club is well-known in the area and the parents of the members are really good at being supportive and helping out when it’s needed.
“It’s lovely to be nominated for a Pride in Oldham Award. The hard work the youngsters and volunteers do often goes unrecognised.”
Peter Palfreyman, who nominated the Cayak Club, said: “These really are the unsung heroes of the borough. The club is run by people who give up their free time after coming home from work.
“The area often gets portrayed in a bad way but this club does a fantastic job with the resources available.”
To nominate someone for a Pride in Oldham award, tell us:
The name of the person or group nominated
A contact number for them, if known
Their job title and place of work, if relevant
Your reason for the nomination
Your name
Your contact number
Send your info by email to editorial@oldham-chronicle.co.uk, marked “Pride in Oldham Awards, 2008
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Northern Counties Housing Association
Oldham Council
University Centre Oldham
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