Tributes have been paid to a stalwart charity volunteer who has died aged 93.
Anne Bell dedicated 32 years’ service to Barnard Castle’s Oxfam shop where she helped manage the book section.
The former primary school teacher moved to Teesdale with her husband Colin after they both retired in 1991.
The couple loved the area having spent many holidays in their caravan at Whorlton.
Her son Matthew said: “After looking at a few properties they settled on Barnard Castle because they preferred a small town with good facilities. They loved their time in Barney and got immersed in the local community and organisations.”
She first began volunteering at the Oxfam shop in 1993 and with her teaching background was perfectly suited to looking after the book section.
Matthew said: “She was a stickler for order, so the books had to be arranged on the shelves alphabetically by author, which meant that Frederick Forsyth must be placed between Ian Fleming and Dick Francis. Heaven help anybody who put them in the wrong positions.
“She was also the jigsaw guru, taking them home and ‘doing’ them to make sure all the pieces were present before they went on sale. And if only Oxfam knew how many books she took home, read, and then took back. And my Christmas presents were usually books from Oxfam.”
Sadly, her husband died in 2009 and with no close relatives in the area, her son said she was incredibly fortunate to have her “Oxfam family”.
Matthew said: “She loved Oxfam and all the staff over the years, and had nothing but good to say about the shop managers she worked for latterly, namely Caroline, Will and Naila.
They, and the team of volunteers, were all family to her.
“She worked there until May 2025, when she was 93, walking up The Bank several times a week from Thorngate to Market Place. She received a few long-service certificates from the Oxfam organisation.”
Shop manager Naila Laundy said: “Anne worked at the Oxfam shop for 32 years coming to work without fail three days a week to sort out books.
“Her passing has created a big hole in the shop’s team of volunteers who miss her a lot.”
