Community Matters

I joined the masses yesterday in signaling my gratitude for the key workers everywhere keeping us going, caring for our sick and delivering us all essential services during this global crisis. I stood alongside my neighbors (from a safe distance) and applauded the tremendous bravery of our NHS, all of us, united, a community, cheering on the greater community, celebrating a national effort.

The feelings evoked were reminiscent of New Year’s Eve, Royal Weddings, World Cup finals even periods of reflection post terrorist attacks. These occasions provide a platform for an unspoken unity between virtual strangers. More than anything, it gave me a sense of community.

Many of the above occasions I have previously experienced in the pub. It was apparent to me last night that our community pubs are much loved and much needed – and the need for us to have this hub to return to will be even more exaggerated post Covid-19.

Our community pub is the lifeblood of our little rural village. It is where we congregate to celebrate and commiserate, it is our Saturday sports hub, and hosts our family Sunday lunches. It is where we learn about who are neighbors really are. It offers us a place to develop friendships – have our much-needed date nights away from the kids, gives us a break from cooking, allows us to ease the pressures of the week and marks our weekends arrival. Our community needs our trade to pull through this, and we need them to believe we will. Hope and Community Spirit are amazing equalizers.

I know that when this period has passed, and it will. We will once more be united in our local pubs – with an even deeper realization of the importance of community. A gratitude for the role our local pubs plays, a joy to be back in our routines and a renewed sense of appreciation for our local pubs and the vital role they play in hosting our events and uniting our communities.

I for one, will be thankful to be sat in a beer garden, surrounded by friends, toasting our resilience and raising a glass to our brilliant industry.

We will be back. I’ll even buy the first round.

Rachael Nixon