Somewhere on an allotment in Hull...

I met with Beki at her allotment a few weeks back to talk to her about herself and her role as #TeamWilder Community Champion. 

Beki, as well as being a busy Mum, a strong advocate for mental health awareness and taking action for wildlife in her local area, also volunteers as #TeamWilder Community Champion. Beki has triumphed over her fair share of challenges and has found solace in her volunteering and her community-based activities.

I immediately got a sense of someone who had a great deal of passion and enthusiasm to share and, even though they probably don’t know it themselves, this is a person who is talented in creating connections and community. 

Sometimes you meet someone and have that Aha! moment - Beki has just the right kind of skills needed for being a Community Champion!

Spoken from the heart

Beki spoke honestly and reflectively about her own personal journey with her mental health, and it was clear she’d done a lot of work to get to where she is.  A huge part of her healing journey centred around her family and her allotment. On her plot she found a sense of peace and meaning - special space away from everything, surrounded by nature and quiet.

“Here at the allotment, I’m not thinking about what’s gone wrong in life—I’m watching a beetle crawl across the path, listening to the birds, planting something that might grow.”

Her daughter (and budding Community Champion) is often involved in the events and activities that Beki is part of – making, building and crafting, she’s there by her side to inspire and enthuse people just like her mum.

Becoming a Community Champion

It was apparent that that Beki wanted to use her own personal experiences to help others. Through first becoming part of the allotment association to then taking on the Community Champion role, Beki has pushed herself to demonstrate the power of connection, growing personally, and the benefits of building a supportive environment, not just for herself but for others too.

Beki, with the support of a friend has helped to bring their allotment committee back from collapse and have worked with other allotment holders to foster knowledge and confidence in giving nature space. In her role she has helped people to feel less afraid of nature on their plots, more connected to the land, and more comfortable with the wildlife around them.

In addition to the committee work, Beki is also establishing a community plot at the front of the allotments for all to see – a bit like a shop window of wildlife gardening and community involvement. 

Her vision is for the plot to be a place where people feel safe, grounded, and curious about nature. It’s gone from a bare, unused space to something that’s slowly becoming alive with biodiversity—hedgehog houses, beetle buckets, soon there’ll be a pond, and companion planting. Its purpose is to be a space where nature thrives alongside people.

“I’d love to see children walk through it and say, “Look! That’s a hedgehog house!” or point out wildflowers they’ve learned about at school.”

Through her role as Community Champion Beki wants to offer people the space where being neurodivergent, mentally unwell, or just not okay is completely accepted. A truly inclusive space for people to be themselves. 

Beki is also advocating for better drainage on the allotment and biodiversity issues in her local area by trying to collaborate with other organisations and developers to push for responsible development.

A true champion in many ways

From chatting to Beki, it felt that her stepping up to volunteer as a #TeamWilder Community Champion was something that almost chose her, rather than the other way around. A natural fit, you could say. 

Before we finished our chat, I got to see how talented an illustrator she was too. To help bring some of her ideas and plans to life she draws them out in her notebook. She hopes to share some of them as signage for the community allotment.

Finally, I’d like to end with a message to Beki - even though you say you’re still on the path and not at the end of your journey, the fact that you can see how far you’ve come really says something about your resilience and ability to help others.

Thank you for talking to me and for all your incredible endeavours as a #TeamWilder Community Champion.