02/06/2026
This week is VOLUNTEERS WEEK in the UK and there is a special Hive Helpers volunteer we’d like to celebrate:
Our lovely Sarah has been with us from our very first year and is worth her weight in gold 💛
Back in 2021, Hive Helpers first operational year, Sarah approached us, stating she liked the sound of our project and wanted to volunteer her time to help us. She had no beekeeping experience but was willing to have a go…
She was the first person to say they wanted to volunteer regularly with us.
Since then, Sarah grabbed the bull by the horns, learning how to become a beekeeper and now handles our bees with a gentle respect which is lovely to watch. Recently she’s proved to be the queen of queen spotting, finding ‘her majesty’ before Erica - twice in a row! 🐝
Every week, Sarah has come to help maintain the apiary and has been our right-hand woman, her calm confidence a reassuring presence at our side through thick and thin. Many people will think dealing with bees is a fhigh adrenaline volunteer role to have, but those in the know will understand that apiary management involves a huge number of hours of very unglamorous and unexciting jobs: cleaning, weeding, pruning, more cleaning, relentless frame making…
Sarah’ support means our apiary can tick over - she helps with decisions, always stands in when Erica is away, helps with young participants and events, and even facilitating courses.
A few years ago Sarah agreed to become one of Hive Helpers directors and has been a firm, sensible hand on the tiller ever since. It has been wonderful to have her as a voice in the project’s leadership team. Using her career experience, Sarah also helps inform our safeguarding processes - we can’t thank her enough for sharing that wisdom.
Recently, Sarah has also branched out her volunteering further into wild bee recording and helping with some of our nature recovery projects, as well as our managed hives.
Having 5 years of you, Sarah, has been both a pleasure and a blessing (unsure if you feel quite the same way about all the HH chaos thrown your way!). We honestly cannot thank you enough. Your smiley face, sense of humour, skills, and quiet, steady commitment are invaluable to us 🥰
