THERE was cake, cheers and tears as charity shop staff bid a fond farewell to their manager who is retiring after 13 years.

Friends, customers and volunteers gathered at The Shop, Cavendish Square to say goodbye to manager Dorothy Brown.

The community stalwart has worked in the Parks community since 1982 and been a familiar face to bargain hunters at The Shop for more than a decade..

A goodbye morning with tea, coffee and a selection of handmade cakes sent off Dorothy who will move to the Isle of Wight. in mid-October.

In an emotional speech The Shop chair Jo Alsworth said :

“We will all miss you. Thank you for all you have contributed to our organisation. I hope you find the new meanings you are looking for. You deserve all the best and may you find it.”

Dorothy said she would dearly miss the team of volunteers and customers.

“I’m glad that I’m still here. I’ve done a good job, I’m leaving something behind and that’s all I wanted. It’s the right time to do it..

“The shop is a family, it’s a place where people can come in, be welcomed, have a chat and the rest of the world doesn’t exist. I’ll miss the people the most,” she said.

“I’ve always wanted to go the extra mile to help out the community.

“It’s been a journey that we have all been on together. The Shop is just one part of it.”

Before her tenure at the shop Dorothy was a community worker for many years serving Parks, Pinehurst and Penhill.

Throughout her time in the community she secured hundreds of thousands of pounds worth of funding for local groups.

Dorothy was also on the board of Voluntary Action Swindon and worked with the Swindon Strategic Partnership

“I always thought, while I can, I will,” said Dorothy, “ I’m quite nosy and enjoy getting involved. Parks, Pinehurst and Penhill get a bad rap but the people will always give their time to volunteer.

Loyal customer Sylvia West said Dorothy would be sorely missed

“I’ve known Dorothy for a good many years and she’s always been there when you want something very important. She gets through to authority and she’s not afraid.

“She not only does the talk, she does the work, she’s hands-on as well as having the ideas. It’s very unusual to find somebody like that or somebody that connects with people whether they are old or young.”

Fellow Shop employee Sam Burley also paid tribute to Dorothy.“She is one of the last few remaining people who genuinely care about the community, not just the one she resides in and has been prepared to give her time voluntarily to so many causes. There are so many people who think so much of her.”