By any standards, the year Cllr Graham Hinchey spent as Cardiff’s Lord Mayor could be classed as truly remarkable.
His 12-month tenure as the city’s 117th First Citizen included both the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and her death, as well as the 40th anniversary of the Falkland’s Conflict, several royal visits and the proclamation of the new King.
Yet for Graham and the Lady Mayoress – his wife Anne – it was the 300-plus other duties he performed, visiting community, military and charity events, schools, care homes and faith groups, and raising more than £85,000 for Guide Dogs Cymru, that they enjoyed the most.
“As a lifelong Cardiffian, it was a huge honour and privilege to have been unanimously elected to serve our capital city and to have been so warmly welcomed by many thousands of people over the year,” he said.
“I would like to say a huge thank you to my ward colleagues, Mike Ash-Edwards and Julie Sangani, to our local schools, business and community groups and friends and neighbours in the Heath for all their local support.
“It was certainly an historic and high-profile year, one we put every ounce of energy into serving our wonderful city and one we will never forget.”
Cllr Hinchey’s successor, the current Lord Mayor Bablin Molik, said: “Graham achieved great success with his fundraising efforts and the money he raised will help fund two guide dogs. Guide dogs are precious and make a world of difference for individuals. I wish him all the best for the future and hope I can succeed in raising much-needed funds for UCAN productions.”
UCAN (Unique Creative Arts Network) is an award-winning performance and creative arts charity for blind and partially-sighted children, young people and adults and currently has more than 700 visually-impaired members throughout Wales. It specialises in drama-based creative learning activities to raise aspirations and improve physical and vocal confidence. The organisation exists to prove that vision impairment is no barrier to success.
