A FORMER town councillor and Mayor of Westbury, the late Mike Hawkins, has been praised for his service to the town by a former colleague.
Mike Hawkins joined the town council in 2003 and served as Westbury mayor twice, in 2005 and 2008. In his time, he oversaw a medal award ceremony for local ex-servicemen who were not previously recognised for fighting in WWII, as well as being a keen campaigner for the Westbury Hospital.
Mike Pearce, who also served as a town councillor and mayor said, “Mike was a true professional. All town councillors bring something to the plate and because of his background in health and safety and the construction industry, he could always be meticulous and would always look at everything from a sensible point of view, which is part of what made him such a good councillor and mayor.
“He always thought out every move in his various roles; he could be quizzed on almost anything and he would give you an answer. He had a funny quirk where if his bottom lip started to drop, you just knew something wise and sensible was about to come out of his mouth – and he never failed.
“During the time when Westbury was celebrating Admiral Nelson’s victory at the Battle of Trafalgar 200 years on in 2005, Mike found out that plenty of ex-servicemen who had fought in Japan in WWII were not met at the station or given a medal in the same way as those that fought in the European theatre of war.
“This spurred Mike on, and the next thing we know 30 people were given a special medal from him to thank them for their service, which is something I will never forget. He went above and beyond for the people of this town, and this is a prime example of that.
“Mike was also very passionate about the Westbury Hospital, and I know he fought hard to make sure that Brenda Jones and Erica Watson’s proposals to save the hospital were listened to. He made sure there was a discussion each month about what the town council could do to help this.
“He never took sides – he was just a genuinely good councillor and Westbury was lucky to have him. I was privileged to work alongside him, and he will be greatly missed. I think it’s sad that we often celebrate people when it’s too late and not when they’re around to know that they are thought about in such high regard.”
Pictured: The late Mike Hawkins.
