THE 91-YEAR-old founder of a charity shop has been honoured after three decades behind the counter of an Oxfam store.

Colleagues of Elsie Garnett had arranged for a special celebration at the Haslingden store to mark the Mayor’s Award she was receiving from Rossendale Mayor Coun Trevor Unsworth in recogntion of her years of tireless charity work.

Volunteers at the store describe Elsie, who opened the Haslingden Oxfam shop with a few donated goods and three staff 27 years ago, as an ‘amazing lady’ and although she retired as manager two years ago, she still volunteers at the Deardengate store.

During the second world war Elsie was a delivery postwoman, delivering mail to rural areas on foot. Over the same period she also worked in Rossendale Hospital as a VAD and following the end of the war she worked in the local cotton mill as a loom operator.

Elsie founded the Oxfam shop on her retirement from the mill until a bad fall meant she had to give up her position as manager.

Her work in the community has also seen her serve as President of the Co-operative Women’s Guild and Secretary of Haslingden’s Old Age Pensioners Club in the past.

Volunteer at the shop Patricia Wilds said: “She is incredible as the fall was quite serious but as soon as she could, she was back on her feet and had returned to the shop.

“Right now she is not in the best of health and we thought it wasn’t right that she had got to 91 without any formal recognition of her work. We contacted the mayor’s office, who were delighted to hear about all she had done for charity.”