Meet volunteer Derek

30.5.2024

Derek has been volunteering at Whirlow since 2010

When Derek retired as a Maintenance Engineer in the Steelworks industry in 2019, living locally to the Farm and being only 53 when he retired, he wanted to do something productive with his time.

Derek certainly has done that as he has supported Whirlow in a range of roles from car parking on event days to abattoir runs! On most days Derek can be found working in the Vineyard and then at the weekend he often drives the tractor for children’s birthday parties. He also helps with seasonal activities including delivering Christmas trees and turkeys, running the Whirlow barbeque for special events and outside catering, and during the Covid-19 pandemic he carried out deliveries from the farm shop’s online orders.

He also took on a paid role of supervising the weddings and estimates he has worked on around 100 Whirlow weddings!

Derek said “Volunteering at Whirlow makes me feel wanted and is a productive use of my skills and my time. Working in different departments means I have met lots of different people. Whirlow is like a family.”

Outside of volunteering at Whirlow, Derek also works as an Exam Invigilator, and he has also been squaredancing for 34 years! He looks after the money for his club, the Sheffield Swirlers. Derek is married to Jan, and they have a son, Adam, and two young grandchildren to keep them busy too.

“I can think of many highlights from my time volunteering with Whirlow including watching visitors have the chance to see a lamb being born or taking them into a field of cows, picking three tons of grapes in the vineyard and the Farm catering for my son’s wedding! Plus, I was selected to go to a Buckingham Palace Garden Party on 6 June 2013 to represent Whirlow on receiving the Queen's award for Voluntary Service.”