Today is National Best Friends Day and we’re marking the occasion with a snapshot of two friends who like to catch up at Ilmington Community Café. “We meet in the café most Wednesdays,” says Carol Taylor (left), from Oxhill. She and Nicola Loades, from Newbold Pacey, often meet with another longtime pal, Belinda from Ilmington, following a good walk. “We walk in all weathers,” says Nicola. “The walking is good for our health and part of the well-being is the lovely welcome we get here at the community café!” The ladies have been friends for many years. They like extra-hot coffees and usually share one of our generous toasted tea cakes. It’s a ritual that involves our volunteers too: we love it when people make us their regular rendezvous. “We are all-weather girls,” says Nicola. “We like the walk and knowing that at the end we’ve got a lovely coffee and half a teacake to look forward to!”
