For nearly two years, Sheila Hankinson, a parishioner at St James, Latchford, has been spreading the word of God from her regular spot, on a bench just outside of Greggs in the Golden Square Shopping Centre in Warrington. In recognition of this, Greggs invited her to cut the ribbon at their recent re-opening, following a refit.
During Covid, Sheila like many, was confined to her home on her own. On the very first day that she ventured out, Sheila took the bus to Warrington and went into the Golden Square Shopping Centre. Nervous and anxious at being among others, and in such a big place in comparison to the confines of her home, she decided to go into Greggs bakery where she had a bacon barm, a coffee, and a bit of chat with the staff. In a moment that Sheila will never forget, she remembers leaving the shop and looking around at the vast space and noticing how the pillars in the shopping centre reminded her of a church, and thinking "God's with me".
A few weeks later, Sheila noticed that a bench had been installed in the centre, just outside of Greggs. Sheila knew then, that the Golden Square Shopping Centre was the place where she was being called to be, to talk with others and to spread the word of God. She's been there almost every day from that moment, talking with shoppers, shop staff and frequenting Greggs for her regular bacon barm and coffee.
Husband and wife, Alan and Chris Sackville have known Sheila for one and a half years, say, "She's amazing, nothing's too much trouble for her. Everybody that walks past her speaks to her. She is there so much that if she is not on her bench, people think she's kicked the bucket. It's like a little surgery she's got running there."
Revd Robert Icke, the vicar of St James, Latchford, where Sheila attends, says; "The Church of England has a focus on attendance figures and mission stats, which is totally understandable, but what you just can't quantify is the kind missional work that Sheila does on a daily basis. She's always the first one at events, and the last one to go, simply because she wants to give to God the glory, for everything he's done in her life."
When Sheila asked how she came to be such a devoted churchgoer and missioner, Sheila recalls how Covid was a real turning point, "Rob [Revd Robert] was a lifesaver during Covid. I was talking with him on the phone and he invited me to join them for morning prayers using Zoom. I don't have the internet so Rob helped me to join in the prayers by telephone. That was really the big arm of the Lord that enveloped me."