A village hall has been saved at the eleventh hour after 10 local residents stepped forward to join the committee.
Boddam Public Hall faced being closed for good when stalwarts Kim Buchan and her mum Peggy Slessor made the decision to walk away from the community asset after 13 years of service.
The pair had maintained the hall and ensured that it stayed open throughout their tenures there, but felt that the time had come for fresh blood to take over.
Mrs Slessor had previously said that, for years, finding people to commit to being a part of the hall committee had been a battle.
At an emergency meeting this week, however, 10 people answered calls to step up – ensuring the hall’s doors will remain open for the foreseeable future.
Last night Mrs Buchan – who will continue to act as the hall’s chairwoman until Christmas to assist the new committee – said it was for the benefit of the community at large that the hall remained a “focal point” for local groups and residents.
“There is still issues, because I don’t think any new members will want to be opening and closing the hall like we did,” she said.
“If they had a caretaker it would be a lot easier. I don’t think Boddam is alone, however, all over halls are struggling with the same kind of thing. Nowadays it seems to be harder to get people to commit to do stuff.”
She added the hall continued to be popular despite uncertainty over its future.
“People have been hiring it – the same people – for years, and they’re grateful that it’s going to be kept open. For them it’s hard to find halls at reasonable prices like ours.
“The hall really is a focal point for the whole village. No one wants to see it boarded up and left to go to wreck and ruin.”
The group is still advertising for a caretaker to maintain the hall and to open and lock it between bookings.