Glasshouse research volunteer
“I have been volunteering at the park since August 25
“I was there right at the very beginning. I was one of the founding trustees. The restoration project was initiated by the Welsh Historic Gardens Trust. As a WHGT trustee, I organised a garden recording session for our members at the Bishop’s Park and was horrified at how unloved the place was at that time (2012). Michael Norman and I worked together to fundraise and set up the Tywi Gateway project, then a project under the WHGT umbrella, to try to do something to improve the gardens. When the second stage of funding was approved by the Heritage Lottery Fund, we set up The Tywi Gateway Trust as a charity in its own right. Due to ill health, I stepped back in 2018. I am still struggling with ill health, but I am able to work quietly from home, so last year volunteered to help with researching heating systems for glasshouses. It is something I can give back to my community. It gives me a way of doing something constructive. Having been busy, all my life, I still need to feel useful and connected.
“I have a passion for gardening, which is limited now as I can’t spend very long in my own garden, and I love reading. Doing research is fascinating and I am excited by how much there is now available on the web.
“I retired last year, due to ill health, from The Trust for Welsh Archaeology, formerly The Dyfed Archaeological Trust. I had worked there for the last 17 years. I am married with four children and five grandchildren, and live on a smallholding just outside Carmarthen. We are scaling back now as we get older, and will probably move into something smaller in a year or so. I am very restricted in what I am able to do now, so am glad that I can dedicate my time to research. I also volunteer in the Carmarthen Records Office, and run the Carmarthen u3a History group. I am treasurer and secretary of the Carmarthen branch of WHGT, and volunteer with Llais on an ad hoc basis. I have a terrible need to be busy.
“I have travelled extensively, spending most of my childhood abroad, and enjoy visiting gardens across the UK, and overseas. I am a lifelong member of the National Trust and the RHS. I studied horticulture at Lackham College for 2 years, taking time out of work to do so. I am an accountant by trade with a passion for gardens. I trained with Grant Thornton, both in their Portsmouth and Bournemouth offices specialising in Charity Accounts.”
Volunteer Stories – Judith Holland
Posted: 10/06/2026 by Anne
Glasshouse research volunteer
“I have been volunteering at the park since August 25
“I was there right at the very beginning. I was one of the founding trustees. The restoration project was initiated by the Welsh Historic Gardens Trust. As a WHGT trustee, I organised a garden recording session for our members at the Bishop’s Park and was horrified at how unloved the place was at that time (2012). Michael Norman and I worked together to fundraise and set up the Tywi Gateway project, then a project under the WHGT umbrella, to try to do something to improve the gardens. When the second stage of funding was approved by the Heritage Lottery Fund, we set up The Tywi Gateway Trust as a charity in its own right. Due to ill health, I stepped back in 2018. I am still struggling with ill health, but I am able to work quietly from home, so last year volunteered to help with researching heating systems for glasshouses. It is something I can give back to my community. It gives me a way of doing something constructive. Having been busy, all my life, I still need to feel useful and connected.
“I have a passion for gardening, which is limited now as I can’t spend very long in my own garden, and I love reading. Doing research is fascinating and I am excited by how much there is now available on the web.
“I retired last year, due to ill health, from The Trust for Welsh Archaeology, formerly The Dyfed Archaeological Trust. I had worked there for the last 17 years. I am married with four children and five grandchildren, and live on a smallholding just outside Carmarthen. We are scaling back now as we get older, and will probably move into something smaller in a year or so. I am very restricted in what I am able to do now, so am glad that I can dedicate my time to research. I also volunteer in the Carmarthen Records Office, and run the Carmarthen u3a History group. I am treasurer and secretary of the Carmarthen branch of WHGT, and volunteer with Llais on an ad hoc basis. I have a terrible need to be busy.
“I have travelled extensively, spending most of my childhood abroad, and enjoy visiting gardens across the UK, and overseas. I am a lifelong member of the National Trust and the RHS. I studied horticulture at Lackham College for 2 years, taking time out of work to do so. I am an accountant by trade with a passion for gardens. I trained with Grant Thornton, both in their Portsmouth and Bournemouth offices specialising in Charity Accounts.”
Category: Latest News