The birthday party held on Saturday 24th August marked 30 years of service to the community.

The party was blessed with good weather and seen several local people come along and participate in a day of fun and games.

Paul Farrell, director of WWHC and Anne Anderson, chairperson, took the lead in the official opening of the day events. Paul thanked everyone from coming along and spoke about where the co-operative had come in the last 30 years. Anne acknowledged the funders of the recent refurbishment work to the Resource Centre, before cutting the red ribbon.

Queues formed in the café to sample the ample supply of burgers, hot dogs and ice cream. There was also a Polish and eastern European food stall for local tenants to try some delicious snacks.

Committee members Dougie Murphy and Phil Welsh Jnr also volunteered to stand in the stocks as a target for wet sponge throwers as part of the day and took a bit of a soaking for a good cause.

The party also had activities such as face painting, arts and crafts, bingo, sports, beat the goalie, skateboarding and bouncy castles. There were also some impressive tombola and raffle prizes including a brand new 55-inch television. Local DJ Alistair Blue from The Party Hut supplied the party with constant music which kept spirits high.

The end of the celebration was marked by the announcement of the raffle winners and an excellent performance from the girls of Osborne Academy of Irish Dance. The total funds raised on the day was over £1100. The party would not have been possible without the hard work from staff and the committee and extremely generous gifts from contractors and local business. All the money raised goes back into The Phil Welsh Welfare Fund to help those people in a time of need.

Paul Farrell said: “The gala day was a huge success with hundreds of local people enjoying the fun, the entertainment and the fantastic weather. It really encapsulated everything that WWHC is all about. A real sense of community was very apparent. Our committee and staff involved in organising the event deserve enormous credit.”