27
Sept
The guiding hand behind an army of Ripon knitters
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With a population approaching 17,000, Ripon is the third smallest city in England, but with deep roots reaching back more than a thousand years, it punches above its weight in terms of history, heritage and custom, while being home to many remarkable citizens who contribute to its daily life.
In this series, Tim Flanagan, the Stray Ferret’s Ripon-based reporter, focuses on people who help to make the ancient city such a special place.
High on that list comes Hazel Barker, who became a Freeman of the City in April 2019 and has been involved in voluntary work for more than 50 years with numerous organisations, including the Girlguiding movement.
The meticulous handiwork of Hazel and her team of non-stop knitters has been seen in millions of stitches and hundreds of displays that have adorned the city’s streets since 2018.
As well as catching the eye of local residents and visitors to Ripon over the past seven years, the work attracted Royal attention and last year earned the knitters the King's Award for Voluntary Service.
The work began in 2017, when Hazel and former mayor of Ripon Stuart Martin became joint founders of the Ripon Community Poppy Project.
It was initially set up to create a fitting tribute to mark the 100th anniversary of Armistice Day which, in November 1918, brought an end to the First World War — a conflict that saw more than 250 local servicemen lose their lives.
The landmark anniversary saw the city wrapped in tens of thousands of bright red knitted poppies made by Hazel, her friends, family, an army of citizens and people around the world who wanted to play their part in Ripon’s remembrance activities.
These included a moving concert at the cathedral, where a light show featuring poignant images of poppies, the names and photos of the city's fallen heroes and verses of wartime poetry projected for three nights onto the western frontage of the iconic building.
Knitters have designed hundreds of themed displays, including this one to celebrate VE Day in May.
The poppy project’s work has grown to embrace other commemoration and celebration events in Ripon, including displays to mark the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022, this year’s 80th anniversaries of VE Day and VJ Day and last year’s 80th anniversary of D-Day, for which the knitters joined forces with Ripon Men’s Shed to create a life-size replica tank in a hangar at Claro Barracks.
The wool and wood Churchill AVRE bunker buster, which has recently been retired, became a focal point of VE Day in Ripon and was featured in local, national and international media coverage, which promoted Ripon's military heritage and the vital role played by the city's Royal Engineers in the Normandy Landings of June 1944 and subsequent liberation of Europe from Nazi rule.
Stuart Martin (centre) and Hazel Barker pictured with Richard Thomson of Ripon Men's Shed on the partly constructed replica tank;
In addition to the King's Award, Royal recognition of the knitters' tireless work also included an invitation to a Buckingham Palace garden party in June, which Hazel attended with close friend Carol Dunkley, a fellow member of the Knit and Natter group, which meets each Monday at Hazel House - the headquarters of the Girlguiding UK Ripon Division, located in the grounds of Community House off Allhallowgate.
Members of the Knit and Natter group with displays created for The Queen's platinum jubilee
The former derelict laundry was transformed into a smart headquarters building and at its official opening in July 2009, was named in Hazel's honour after she, with help and guidance from Stuart Martin, launched a successful fundraising campaign that was supported by the community.
It raised an incredible £400,000, including a substantial donation from Paul and Valeria Sykes.
Former division commissioner Hazel, who received the Laurel Award for exceptional service to the girlguiding movement, said:
Our old base on Blossomgate was going to be demolished and we called a meeting to decide if we were going to look for new premises.
We decided to go for it, so I got the ball rolling and started fundraising, initially thinking we could raise the money selling cakes and jam, but it soon became clear that it would take much more than that, as the refurbishment project hit numerous snags.
It took a great deal of hard work from a lot of people, but we got there in the end.
Hazel Barker and Carol Dunkley pictured in June at a Buckingham Palace garden party. Pic: Hazel Barker
Hazel pointed out:
My fellow volunteers and I have never done things to try and win awards.
We've just got on with our work, because we know it's the right thing to do for Ripon and helps to promote the city in which we all take great pride.
A busy life
Hazel, the younger daughter of Bob and Florence Wood, was born in 1944 and brought up on a farm at the Lime Kilns near Burton Leonard, which had no electricity or running water.
She received her secondary education at the former Ripon Modern School — now called Outwood Academy — and left there at the age of 15 to take a job as a baker before moving on to cake decoration at Deacon's Bakery in Harrogate.
Since those teenage days, she has achieved a great deal in her life, including being a founder member of Ripon Community Pantomime, teaching at Holy Trinity Church Sunday School and being secretary of both the Ripon Centre WI and Kirkby Malzeard branch of the Royal British Legion.
The Ripon Classic Car Gathering at Ripon Racecourse has, over 30 years, raised £250,000 which has been donated to local charities
In addition, Hazel and her late husband Keith, who died in May just five days before VE Day was celebrated in the city, were founder members of the Ripon Old Cars group, which subsequently grew into the Ripon Classic Car Gathering — an event that over 30 years has raised £250,000 for local charities.
All of this voluntary work was done while the skilled cake decorator and former Ripon Grammar School cook was feeding her family, keeping the home tidy and making sure that daugthers Caroline and Marie were doing their school homework.
Life became even busier when Hazel was appointed as an area catering manager for North Yorkshire Council — a role in which she looked after 82 schools in the Harrogate and Hambleton districts.
A case of mistaken identity
The story of Hazel's community activities could have been much shorter, had she not survived a serious accident at the age of 17.
She said:
I crashed my motorbike into a stationery van at Wormald Green when I was on my way home from work on a wintry evening in late December 1961 and suffered injuries including a broken jaw, which had to be wired up.
I was in a haze when the ambulance crew arrived to take me to hospital in Harrogate and from there I was transferred to St James's Hospital in Leeds, where they put me on the men's ward because I was wearing a pair of trousers that I had made for riding the motorbike and they thought I was a man.
They eventually discovered that I wasn't and I was moved to the women's ward and stayed there until the New Year, when I was allowed home.
We asked Hazel what she has found remarkable during her years of service to the community, who she most admires and what could be done to make Ripon even more special.
Theae are the questions and her aswers:
What do you consider to be the most remarkable things that you are involved in Ripon?
Ripon Community Poppy Project. and Girlguiding.
What is the most remarkable thing that has happened to you during your years in the city?
Being honoured a Freeman of the City
What do you think makes Ripon special?
The people. The community spirit .
What could be done to make it even more special?
More provision for car parking
Where do you like to relax?
At home
Which local businesses and people do you most admire?
ECON , MKM , Ripon Farm Services. Tate's Garden Centre and Colour it In - all of whom have all been generous with money, goods and time.
Stuart Martin for his involvement not only with Ripon Community Poppy Project but also the many charities and organisations he has helped in the past and continues to do today. His knowledge and expertise has enabled many groups to florish.
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