Hi everyone,
Tomorrow, Tuesday 28 August 2018, the cafe will be open for a restricted service in the morning, and will close for the rest of the day at 12.45 pm.
The rest of the reserve, and shop, will be open as usual.
Apologies for any inconvenience - the team at Rainham will be paying our final respects at the funeral of one of our valued volunteers.
Caroline, our Catering Manager has said:
"Edie has been a volunteer here at Rainham Marshes for many years and has previously worked as one of our gardeners before becoming a well known cafe volunteer. She could always been seen on Mon, Wed, Fri and Sundays working in the cafe on the dishwasher, carrying food out to everyone, and cleaning tables.Edie was the defacto Governor of the cafe and a core member of our team. We are all devastated by the loss and our thoughts go out to her husband George, who can often be found out wandering the river wall and reserve. Edie was an unstoppable force and amazed every single one of us each day, she was the heart and soul of the cafe and to say she will be missed is an understatement. I hope everyone will understand my reasoning for closing the cafe for her funeral as we all say our final goodbyes to an amazing and irreplaceable woman."