Carol Doey Cookstown

This months blog is on Cookstown’s Carol Doey.

Carol worked in the Dainty Fit factory where she kept all the workers entertained, as I’m sure you can imagine if you have ever had the pleasure of meeting Carol. From an early age, believe it or not, Carol had the desire to be a minister. LOL  This may have been because she wanted to be able to take charge and do all the talking or may have been because she liked the idea of knowing that she would only have to really work on a Sunday and the odd during the week.

Despite this desire, Carol worked in the Glenavon Hotel in Cookstown and not surprisingly some of the antics that took place then are talked about to this very day. Carol also worked in London for a number of years where she was the manager of a job centre. She taught silver service for those who wanted to be a waiter/waitress. Again, you can only imagine the larking about. On top of this, she also completed a course on therapeutic massage which she still does today. Carol would confirm that this, among many appointments, is her main job. Additionally she embarked on a course on drama and completed a diploma in drama and teaching. With this knowledge Carol teaches drama to both children and adults.

As a result of this Carol required a place for drama and so created The Open Door Theatre group which consists of Leading Men, Leading Ladies and Leading Kids, inclusive of those with disabilities.  This was a first of this type of opportunity in the Cookstown area and was extremely successful. With Leading Men, Leading ladies and Leading Kids all combined everyone had many entertaining and enjoyable times. The only downfall that arose was no ‘fixed abode’ to allow for rehearsals. The group moved from venue to venue within Cookstown until Carol commissioned The Hub as the base for The Open Door Theatre Group.

The Hub, Burn Road Cookstown has grown from strength to strength and it is vital to highlight that this has all been completed by dedicated volunteers.  With no grants to cover the cost of utilities, both the receipt of generous donations and fundraising events held in The Hub make it possible to pay the bills.

Carol was deservingly awarded a BEM for all of her work in the community. She also won The spirit of Northern Ireland and what a wonderful night this was. Cookstown should be and are definitely proud of the work Carol Doey and her team of volunteers have achieved to date and the work they continue to do. Carol and the volunteers have put Cookstown on the map, with no other ‘town Hub’ delivered solely by volunteers.

Call in at the Hub and take the opportunity to find out what it does and who all it supports. There’s a great team there and they all make you feel very welcome. What they are doing for this community and beyond is amazing. We should all feel very proud to have this in Cookstown and our thanks go out to the team of volunteers that make this happen. Carol you simpy have made a difference to so many people  and we just wanted to thank you for all that you have done.