Members of a Northwich archery club have worked together to help a local care home resident fulfil a lifelong ambition.

Christopher Taylor, who lives at Daneside Court residential home in Northwich, had always wanted to try his hand at the ancient sport of archery, but the opportunity had never presented itself.

But when carer Nicky Orme found out about Christopher’s ambition, she approached Andrew Oliver, membership secretary at Winnington Park Bowman Archery Club, to see if he could help.

Andrew contacted fellow club members who put together a plan to help the 66-year-old achieve his dream. 

Christopher was accompanied to the club’s indoor shooting range at Winnington Park Recreation Club by carers Nicky Orme and Mea O’Rourke, where they were met by club members Ian Garton and Leigh Hadfield.

Northwich Guardian: Christopher Taylor shows off his archery gold medal (Daneside Court) Christopher Taylor shows off his archery gold medal (Daneside Court) (Image: Daneside Court)

They were then given a demonstration of the various kinds of bows the club use, followed by a short talk on how they were historically used for hunting.

With the help of Ian and Leigh, Christopher was then able to have a go himself, successfully putting several arrows into the target.

A spokesperson for Daneside Court said: “The evening just got better and better for Chris. The members presented him with a special archery club branded polo shirt! 

“Then the group found out that Leigh Hadfield represented England in the Commonwealth Archery Championship of the Europe Games, and is going to enter the next Olympics! 

“All felt very honoured at this point, then Leigh gave Chris his own personal gold medal, which he had won in an archery competition.   

“Chris is wearing his polo shirt with pride in the home. He had a wonderful evening, and the archery club went above and beyond to make Chris feel welcome, helping him every step of the way.

“Their dedication to him exceeded expectations of making his wish come true. Colleagues can’t thank everyone enough for a wonderful evening.”

Christopher said: “I had a brilliant night, and it was special in every way for me.” 

Samantha Farahat, Daneside Court care home manager, said: “This is a perfect example of what we are striving to achieve for all our residents.

“When you come to live in care, this doesn’t mean that any hopes, wishes or dreams you had previously can’t still be fulfilled.

“Thank you to the archery club for making this dream come true.”