The Friends of Handforth Station received an early birthday present on Tuesday, 3rd November, when the retired organiser of Cheshire Best Kept Station Competition visited the station and presented the group with an original watercolour of the station.
Commissioned over 10 years ago for the local tourism booklet "The Baggin Man takes the Train", the author John Hulme and Cheshire artist Bernice Barrett-Brown have now decided to donate the painting to the volunteers for display in their waiting room and booking hall.
John, who visited Handforth Station on Tuesday, said "The painting depicts the positive impact a volunteer group can have in the community.
"The Friends Group is 20 years old in 2016 and both the artist and I thought this would make a nice early birthday present for the Group.
"It is now 10 years ago since I wrote "The Baggin Man takes the Train" booklet that gave a whistle stop tour of Cheshire Stations and the work carried out by local community groups.
"The Friends of Handforth Station have always led the way in Community Rail projects and it has been a privilege to see how the station has developed over the years to become a prized asset in the community."
Mike Bishop, Chair of the Friends of Handforth Station said: "I would like to thank John and artist, Bernice Barrett-Brown, for donating this lovely original watercolour to the Friends' Group. This is a splendid first of a number of exhibits planned to commemorate our 20th anniversary in 2016. We will display the painting with pride in our booking hall for all the community to enjoy.
"We are also delighted that John has secured a number of signed copies of the original booklet, which are available on request at the booking office. The 32 page colour booklet contains 13 superb watercolours of Cheshire stations and tells the story of the Cheshire Best Kept Station Competition.
"Handforth Station has twice won the top accolade in this Competition and continues to strive to be the best in Cheshire. Our success is down to the creative partnership working in our community and I thank all those volunteers and local groups that have supported us over the years."
Photo by Malcolm Spence: John Hulme ( left) hands over original watercolour to Mike Bishop.
