Celebrating 20 incredible years of The Bridges, Hull
On Friday 20th September 2024, past and present service users, employees, trustees, and friends of The Forward Trust visited the centre from all over the country to give thanks and pay tribute to the life-changing support delivered by amazing service.
The event started off with an introductory speech from Mike Trace, CEO of The Forward Trust, acknowledging the background of the service from its humble beginnings to the service it is today – now supporting both men and women in need of residential rehabilitation support for drug and alcohol addiction.
This was followed by the Bridges first ever client, Craig Dexter, who’s moving and insightful personal journey really demonstrated the transformative impact of The Bridges.
We were also grateful to have speeches from the local MP for Kingston upon Hull North, Dame Diana Johnson, and the High Sheriff of East Riding of Yorkshire, Colonel Christopher Henson, who both expressed their gratitude to The Bridges for its contributions to help vulnerable individuals to lead lives free of from addiction.
An honorary plaque was revealed at the end of the day by Forward’s CEO Mike Trace and Ted Burr, Admissions and Referrals Co-Ordinator at The Bridges, to celebrate 20 years of the service.
The Bridges is a residential rehabilitation centre that provides full-time care for men and women with drug and alcohol addictions aged 18 and over. It has helped hundreds of clients since it first opened its doors in 2004, some of which we were delighted to be joined by at the celebration event, including the very first client of The Bridges, who is now celebrating 20 years of recovery himself.
Charlie-Forbes Adams, a key member of The Bridges Fundraising Advisory Group, also paid his respects to the work of staff across The Bridges and Forward in helping people to seek support for drug and alcohol use.
Julie Muir, Executive Director of Recovery Services at Forward, rounded-off the event with a compelling speech about how much work had gone into the restoration of the new premises – and how much progress had been made in such a short space of time since it’s purchase only two years ago.
Speaking at the event, Mike said:
“The Bridges has always been about what the organisation fundamentally tries to achieve: to help people who are struggling, show care and compassion, show practical help, and believe in people so they can make transformational changes in their lives. That has happened hundreds of times at The Bridges over the last 20 years.”
Throughout the afternoon, guests were served with tasty canapes alongside our special 20th-anniversary-branded cupcakes that went down a treat!
We want to say a huge thank you to past and present staff from The Bridges, fundraisers from over the years, and former and current clients for making The Bridges the brilliant service that it is today. Here’s to the next 20 years!
You can visit The Bridges’ website to learn more about the service and the support we provide.