Gaynor Wilson
Services Manager
Biography
What is your favourite Mill memory? I really enjoy our Charity days. One that stands out in particular to me is Children in Need in 2016. We set ourselves a Triathlon challenge which consisted a full marathon distance, 26.2 miles, on three pieces of indoor exercise equipment, a step machine, rowing machine and exercise bike. We thought it would take all day to achieve this but between all the reception staff and lots of our tenants we managed to smash our goal by 2pm! In conjunction with the challenge we also held a bake sale, we all deserved a slice of cake after our marathon challenge!- What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? I love to read - any genre, thriller, romance, horror, biography, classic literature, science fiction - I'll read anything! I started running around 4 years ago and on my days off am often found running around Endcliffe Park or out to Ringinglow. As a family we all enjoy skiing and try to go each year.
- What is your greatest achievement? Aside from giving birth to my two amazing sons, in 2015 I took part in the Sheffield Half Marathon, this is something that I never thought I would be able to achieve. 2 years earlier I was struggling to run for more than 10 minutes without stopping so running 13.1 miles is something that I am very proud of myself for completing.
- What is your favourite concert? I really enjoy watching live music and a favourite gig has to be the Arctic Monkeys homecoming concert at Don Valley Bowl back in 2011. I went with my husband and some friends and we had an amazing time, it took me back to my youth of enjoying gigs at Sheffield University Refectory as a teenager as we managed to get down to the front of the stage in the mosh pit - I shouldn't have worn new white sneakers though!
- What would you put in Room 101? Something that I hate is litter and I cannot understand why people would drop litter when it is so easy to find a bin or just keep it with you until you get home. Seeing litter in the countryside makes me not only sad but angry too. We are so lucky to live in this beautiful country that everyone should want to preserve it and be proud but sadly there are many people who do not think twice about throwing litter on the floor.
- An easy one - what is your favourite food? I love tomatoes and can often be found at the Reception desk snacking on a box of cherry tomatoes, I like them in any form - sun dried are probably my favourite, especially when accompanied by pesto, rocket and mozzarella on ciabatta.
Finally, there are many heritage items on show in Aizlewood's Mill, describe one of them. One of the first things to greet visitors to Aizlewood's Mill is a very large black cast iron screw which is fixed into the roof of the reception area. This is our Archimedes Screw which we believe was used to transfer grain to different parts of the mill for processing. Quite a few people know exactly what it is when they see it but others have no idea that it is a surviving relic from the Mill when it was a working flour mill.