A welcome to Anne as Chairperson

Hello, I’m Anne Simmons, the recently appointed Chair of the Directors of the Friends of St Mary’s.

I have lived on the island for sixteen years, having been a headteacher in the London Borough of Lewisham for seventeen years. A job I enjoyed, and relished the challenges thrown up in two large inner city Primary schools. Since moving here, I stayed involved in education by being Chair of Governors at a Primary, and a Middle school.

Another pleasure was being involved in the revitalisation of Shanklin Theatre, volunteering in the box office.

Having had three operations in St Mary’s, I wanted to put something back into supporting a hardworking, and dedicated, greatly appreciated hospital community.

As a volunteer with the Friends of St Mary’s (FOSM), I took the trolley round the wards, as well as covering in the shop and cafe. Sadly, we no longer have that extremely popular cafe, but our shop is thriving, thanks to the manager, and the happy band of volunteers.

We are grateful for any support you can give us, be that volunteering, or donating to our funds which go to support the work in various departments.

Our shop is open from Monday to Friday, from 8.00 am until 4.00 pm. Call in and see us, we would be delighted to