FORMER Bolton man Paul Briggs was recently a guest of the Princess Royal at St James' Palace. Mr Briggs, whose parents still live in Barrow Bridge, runs the Broad Street Mall Shopping Centre in Reading. His efforts with a "Christmas Giving Tree" led to a reception and presentation organised by the Save the Children Charity.
Princess Ann, who mingled with the invited guests, presented Mr Briggs with a certificate of thanks for the Mall's "outstanding fund-raising contribution."
The tree in the Mall led to 750 gifts for needy children.
Shoppers and members of the general public took cards from the tree and bought gifts for the children named.
He hopes the Giving Tree will lead to more than 1,000 gifts this year.
Mr Briggs worked at one time in a development role at the Last Drop complex and developed the Liberty Street dining concept in Westhoughton.
Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article