Spotlight
Alex
On a warm August afternoon, with the market bustling away in the background, there are few better spots than Golborne Road to sit down and watch the world go by. For Alex Loncar, the co-owner and manager of Golborne Deli, it is a scene he knows well. Having hung out on Golborne Road for years, Alex was familiar with the market and its many characters, calling many of them friends. In fact, it was a conversation with one of these friends that led him to where he is now. “Enzo, the previous owner of Golborne Deli told me he was looking to sell the business,” says Alex. “I thought the deli had real potential and it seemed like too good an opportunity to miss.” Together with his business partner George, Alex bought Golborne Deli 18 months ago and hasn’t looked back. “I’d always worked in the hospitality industry, managing restaurants and clubs, and have a pretty good understanding of what customers are after,” he [...]
Anastacio
After 28 years at Wornington Green, Anastacio Maranga is a well-known face in the area. But few of his neighbours are aware of his illustrious past, first as a competitor and then as a coach with the Philippines national archery team. It is a past of which he is justifiably proud. Having played table tennis throughout his youth, he represented the Philippines at the sport at Asian Games in Tokyo, Jakarta and Singapore before making the switch to bows and arrows. “Once I started losing to younger players at table tennis, I knew it was time for a change,” says Anastacio. “So I took up archery, and never really looked back.” It very quickly became obvious that he had a real talent for archery and he linked up with the Philippines national team, at which point his life became very different. Training camps in Michigan, USA and Rome, Italy saw his improvement continue to the point where he secured the prestigious title of Senior [...]
Chandrika
It doesn’t take long for visitors to Meanwhile Gardens to understand just how important this project is to the local community. Walking through the gardens as they gently meander alongside the Grand Union Canal, it is a hive of activity. Volunteers are planting flowerbeds, parents and toddlers are dropping into the play hut for a splash in the paddling pool, teenagers are perfecting their tricks in the skatepark and a group of trainees are busy tending to a wildlife area. It’s a scene both familiar and rewarding to Chandrika Dalpat, who oversees Meanwhile Gardens with the help of a small committed team and a group of enthusiastic local volunteers. After starting at Meanwhile Gardens in 1994 as an administrator – “I certainly never expected to still be here 18 years later,” she says – Chandrika is now the charity’s project manager. Meanwhile Gardens was founded by sculptor Jamie McCulloch in 1976, when he spotted a patch of derelict land between Golborne Road and Great Western [...]
Pat
“I’m a Ladbroke Grover, born and bred,” says Pat Arcadipane with the pride of someone that clearly has a deep affection for where they live. And it’s easy to see why; after a lifetime in the area, including 34 years in her current home at Wornington Green, Pat is very much a fixture of a community that has retained its decidedly friendly feel. It is a community where Pat clearly feels comfortable and, after raising a family in the area, knows a lot of people of all ages. “It’s a nice neighbourhood,” she says, adding, “when I’m out and about I always bump into someone I know, and the young lads make sure they give me a hand back home with my shopping.” No doubt they remember the delicious food she used to cook for her children and their friends when they were growing up. But despite being one of Wornington Green’s best-known faces, Pat found herself increasingly isolated. Caring for her disabled husband [...]
Jalen
Last month’s Spotlight focused on key employees at our new contractor, Ardmore, who highlighted some of the training and employment initiatives that they would be putting in place at Wornington Green. This month, we speak to Jalen Scarlett, a local resident who has been working as a labourer on-site with Ardmore since January. Jalen got his first taste for a career in construction through an introductory course run by P2P. At the time, he was too young to gain a qualification but it provided the motivation to go and study Construction Level 1 at Kensington and Chelsea College (KCC). With P2P’s help, Jalen has now secured employment with Ardmore and is hoping to be taken on as an apprentice later this year. Despite having undertaken some formal training at both KCC and the College of North West London (CNWL), Jalen is a big fan of on-the-job learning. “I was never very good at sitting in a classroom and learning” he says “but this provides [...]