🌟 My Journey as a Wirral Community Helper

🌱 Beginnings with a Slice of Cheek

Well, this story certainly started 2 years ago when I first began entering local shops and big brand stores, calling myself a “community helper”. Looking back now and thinking about how much time I spent doing this, and how many managers I spoke to, is direct determination with a slice of cheek ; ) It was amazing for me to learn this process of interaction with mainstream business as well as local business, where we could talk about the old days—like how one high street had 7 pubs and lots of locally-owned shops, bustling with community life!

🎁 The Unexpected Gift of Being a Beginner

Something special happened during that first year, something I never saw coming and that I will never experience again! It was the process of being a complete beginner, otherwise known as a noob hehe, but so was my idea! It wasn’t just me trying to be the local bard for the first time ever; the idea and pitch I presented had never been seen or heard of before. I fully believe this in my area of the Wirral purely because I use some of the most advanced tech to achieve what I do with my website, and we have never had this chance before solely due to the lack of tech available to independents : )

🎤 Perfecting My Pitch

The biggest speciality to come from my first year was my pitch! I always go to a shop wearing the same type of clothes to give all managers an equal chance to judge based on appearance. Sad but true fact—first impressions sometimes only count on appearance : ( But then I give them my pitch, which always starts with my name and the fact I am a community helper who works with Google to make fabulous stories about the Wirral.

For the first month, all I did was stutter, but I tested myself and my abilities to the maximum. In that first year, I was turning up to Heswall with a camera, telling shop owners I’d be taking pictures of their shop and doing a community review all about how amazing they are! I’ll never forget walking into a hairdresser’s in Upton. They understood me and my idea straight away, replying, “I love this kind of thing.” But wow, that hairdresser’s was full—with about 10 staff and lots of community members. Before entering, I remember thinking, “Now time to test my ability to talk in a crowd of amazing community members ; )”.

💬 Pitching with Confidence

This pitch has genuinely changed my life. The confidence I gained after one year elevated my pitch to another level. I try not to give fake advice, but here’s my take on real life: “Think about what you want to do in life and develop a pitch or a story about how you’ll get there. Start telling people your story, your life goal, and how you’ll achieve it. When you have people who truly believe in you and your goal, it makes things much easier ; )”.

So many police officers, shop owners, politicians, community groups, council members, housing agencies, and many other organizations have now heard my pitch. Each time I spoke it and met a new true Wirral character, my pitch improved, my confidence grew, and my stutter vanished ha!

😏 Year Two: Adding a Cheeky Twist

Year two began, and I introduced a bit of cheek to my pitch, like: “Hey Mr Big Brand Manager, thanks for your time over the last year, but I have a cheeky question. Why do you have a ‘used by’ date on your plants and flowers, and why do your bosses make you put them all in the bin when they reach this date? Why on earth does this happen when our community garden is right outside your building, and the community would greatly benefit from the plants? Just before you bin them, Pretty Please ask your bosses and put them in my back bin because I have massive pockets “.

After 2 years, I don’t have to give my opening pitch very often anymore—quite the opposite ha. Something truly outstanding is happening! Now community members approach me, saying, “Are you that guy who does this garden for free?” I joke about how Google is training me to take over the company, starting from the grassroots, literally ; )

If your pitch and story help make things better, it’s worth it. Most importantly, you have to believe in your pitch, and then others will too. When you find it, refine it, you’ll truly see your life changing before your eyes. #BigEvents

👔 Celebrating Remarkable Managers

My pitch has connected me with some truly amazing managers over these two years, and I want to mention some special ones I’ll never forget. Firstly, the three regional managers I randomly met in shops were amazing. Their people skills explain why they’re in their roles. The time spent with them involved me trying my best to pick up some of their lingo because their welcoming nature and dialect were priceless. Thanks, regionals : )

The two managers from my local council One Stop shop are exactly what our community needs. Given more freedom to help, they’d do so much more. One is a natural storyteller who would love to visit the front gardens, chatting with the community about past and future years. The other is a dependable doer—the kind of person you can count on to get things done. If given more flexibility, I’m sure he’d join me in the gardens. The community would love seeing these two local One Stop men interacting daily.

🌟 LadyK: A Caring Champion

There is a manager I really like named LadyK, simply because of her warm manner. Her persona radiates care! Trust me, I’ve met many managers and understand everyone has a bad day, but I have yet to see LadyK not showing care for the community. LadyK will go down in history as the first-ever manager who directly supported the Wirrals Big Green Week, joining us for a litter pick and even bringing her own litter picker! See what I mean about LadyK’s care? I truly hope her corporate superiors see this one day, triple her wages, and give her a new role to spread her persona to other managers in their business. #LadykPersona
WithCare

🌳 Miss Tree: Making Miracles at Rock Ferry

I must also mention Miss Tree. If this wonderful manager is still a mystery to you, then you haven’t read her article yet hehe. The chance of our meeting was small, but what we developed together at Rock Ferry flower gardens has been miraculous for the local Wirral community! It’s a true success story generated by and for the Wirral community—we couldn’t have done it without you! If you didn’t like the community gardens, you’d surely let us know : ) In the article, I joked about giving Miss Tree a data overload, but now let’s collectively give her a community overload by saying thanks whenever we see someone planting a tree on the Wirral—it could just be a wonderful Miss Tree.

👮 Sergeant Totti: Community Care with Authority

The next individual might not hold a manager’s title, but he’s a sergeant in the Bebington police force, which is as good as a manager in my eyes! I call him Totti, comparing him to a midfield general : ) I met Totti walking the streets of Rock Ferry alone late one evening near Rock Ferry flower gardens. I immediately approached him and started talking about his rank because it’s not often we see a sergeant patrolling alone! That’s when the friendly banter began—I love it! For years, police might have wanted to pull me over for a random search, but now I stop them for a “random brain search” looking for community care ha! Totti was clearly an important figure and a police officer whose authority is blended with genuine care.

Recognizing the significance of this meeting, I went into full community helper mode, discussing my journey with Google. He then said, “oavo, you’re never going to believe it.” I replied, “I beg your pardon!” He laughed and explained, “I’ve just been designated the community representative for Rock Ferry and a few other areas, managing a £40,000 community grant.” That’s when I mentioned my two-year-long friendly banter with local police about providing flowers for our Rock Ferry gardens, making clear that my best friend Google’s advertising means I can’t accept money from other affiliations hehe #QuiteLiterallyTaking
JustGoogleMoneyHeHe. I haven’t had a second meeting with Totti yet, but I’m sure our paths will cross again soon.

🏪 RelieMan: A Generous Partner from B+M

Another remarkable manager is from the local B+M superstore. After a wonderful Miss Tree permitted planting at Rock Ferry, I visited shops I’d connected with over two years, asking for discounted flowers! That’s when I met RelieMan, the B+M manager, for the first time. It took around 10–14 minutes to reach an understanding because my idea and pitch were unprecedented—it takes time to fully grasp during initial meetings ha. Once he realised we shared a similar ethos but travelled slightly different paths, he said, “I can do half-price for the Rock Ferry community.” I replied, “I have developed a keen eye for care in others’ eyes, and I knew it!” Thanks, RelieMan—it was amazing talking to you. Shoutout to your corporate superiors for allowing this to happen. #B+M : )

🛠️ Hulk and Thor: DIY Heroes from Wickes

Now, concluding this blog celebrating Wirral managers, some say I should balance things out with tough encounters, but I can’t—not after what we’ve achieved together! As the cheeky window cleaner and managers across our sunny seaside town of the Wirral, we made history during our Big Green Week leaflet campaign, getting leaflets into numerous shops exclusively for the community.

Let me finish with the most memorable meeting of all—two managers from my local Wickes DIY superstore, whom I call “Thor” and “Hulk.” These two managers have open hearts and never judge solely by appearance. Hulk can vouch for this; he remembers me from two years ago and is always positive. Talking to Hulk leaves you feeling optimistic and joyful. After the legendary Miss Tree gave me permission to plant flowers, I visited Wickes, hoping to see Hulk or the mighty Thor.

Thor greeted me—a can-do guy you can rely on, entrusted to open and close the building, and, most importantly, trusted to care for those around him. That’s a fundamental role for a manager—to look after others! Thor embodies this, and alongside Hulk, deserves triple wage increases and to spread their incredible personas just like LadyK !

So, if you’ve ever seen smiley faces made from plants on any page of my site, oavo.co.uk, all those plants were generously provided by these amazing managers from the Wirral community for the Wirral community! Oh yes, with Thor and Hulk’s incredible help, we acquired over 60 plants from Wickes DIY superstore without exchanging any money, all achieved through freedom of speech and goodwill and the power of the amazing Heoreos called Wirral Managers : )