Former education bursary recipient becomes Trustee

Former grant recipient Denis Twomey has come full circle by becoming a Trustee of Wiltshire Community Foundation.

Denis, who was awarded an education bursary to enable him to attend Bristol Theatre School in 2014, said he is delighted and honoured to take up his new role. He said: “I am very fortunate to be in a position where I can give this time and skillset to people who then have the opportunity to award funding to those most in need.”

After graduating from Bristol Denis spent several years working backstage in touring musicals and drama productions and in 2019 became a member of our education panel, using his own experience to help to award bursary grants for another generation of students.

“I was working in residential childcare at the time so volunteering for the education panel seemed an excellent fit. I was able to bring my knowledge and skills of working with young people and also my experience as a recipient so I was very fortunate that the chair at the time was more than willing to take me on.”

He now works in project management for Cavendish Nuclear in Bristol and feels he has more time to devote to voluntary work. Denis said: “With this job I am in a more stable position than I was when I was touring and I felt like I wanted to give back – but in a meaningful way rather than just for the sake of doing so.

“That small pocket of my heart that is dedicated to the foundation has grown over time and I feel such a strong sense of loyalty. I feel like I'm repaying them for the kindness that I was given but also doing my bit to help make the world a better place – and the fact that I'm a Wiltshire boy born and bred makes it even more worthwhile.”

Wiltshire Community Foundation Joint Chief Executive Fiona Oliver said: “We’re absolutely delighted to welcome Denis as a Trustee and are looking forward to working even more closely with him.

“We have always appreciated the perspective he has brought to his role as a grant panellist. We feel it is really important to have the voice of someone who has been a grant recipient because ultimately they are the reason we all do this.”