Well I guess at some point I should explain about Lee Abbey and what it is (For those that are interested, you can find out more at www.leeabbey.org.uk which is of course...our official website), but first I think I need to explain a little about my life before L.A.
I was bullied a heck of a lot at school regarding my sexual orientation (to the point of wanting to commit suicide), which in turn meant I did not want to be at school, much less revise for my GCSEs. Despite doing absolutely zero revision I still managed to get some Bs and Cs!!! I'd also been a pretty OKAY student (if one misses out MATHS urgh!!!) and in courses such as Tech Graphics, I always got A* in my coursework.
It's taken me many years to get over my "bitterness" about having my Academic future altered/changed or even taken away from me by mindless bullies, but it's clear that God had other plans for my life.
I left school and enrolled on a wretched "painting and decorating" course. The people I would be working with turned out to be SO racist, I feared what might happen to me if they found out about me. I quit after one day!
I somehow ended up enrolling for NVQ2 Hairdressing which to my amazement, I really enjoyed. I had two great years. The girls were awesome. It was like having a class full of sisters, mothers and best friends, all of whom looked after me.
After getting an AMAZING job (shortly before I was to complete my NVQ3) at Glitz Hair Design and spending 18 (or so) amazing months with great team there. it was becoming increasingly obvious that making people look amazing physically, was not what I was called to do. So I resigned - much to the sadness of virtually everyone in my life (but my sister-in-law Kathryn was very supportive throughout this decision).
I then took on a part-time job on a voluntary basis with Heartland Youth For Christ in Administration (not to mention becoming the charity's secretary). I had a great year with the Team and it was quite an exciting time - to witness this fledgling charity take shape. It was a necessary year of my life, albeit financially draining on my parents. God was beginning to work things out in me, and I was beginning to get more involved with True Freedom Trust (TfT) and other Christian events/charities.
It wasn't until I visited Martin Hallett (the Director of TfT) that the idea of working at "Lee Abbey" came to mind. I went to see Martin in February 2004 and as it turns out, he had just been guest speaker at Lee Abbey working alongside Elaine Storkey. It was certainly an unexpected suggestion from Martin, as up until that point, I had never even heard of the place. However I had (and still do have) a great deal of respect for him and so, with help of some close friends, paid a visit to the grounds of Lee Abbey before filling in my application form to become a summer worker. Little did I know that 16 months later, I'd still be here!
