We are delighted to announce that Cornish local and bestselling author, Cathy Rentzenbrink, is championing Emmaus Cornwall as our first official ambassador.
The Sunday Times bestselling author and journalist has joined Emmaus Cornwall at the start of our fundraising appeal to open a residential community for homeless people in the county.
Our proposed Emmaus community will be the first of its kind in Cornwall and will provide a home for as long as it is needed, the opportunity to gain work experience in a social enterprise, daily support and funded training so people can rebuild their lives.
As someone who regularly interviews authors and chairs literary events, Cathy, who lives in Falmouth, is supporting our charity by helping to host a series of online events that welcome well-known authors as special guests.
To date, Cathy has been joined in conversation by The Salt Path author Raynor Winn and former hostage and humanitarian, Terry Waite, helping to raise a total of £5,700 for Emmaus Cornwall so far.
Future special guests joining Cathy include James Bowen, author of A Street Cat Named Bob, Patrick Gale, author of Emmy award-winning BBC drama, Man in an Orange Shirt, and BBC wildlife presenter and author, Kate Humble.
Commenting on her new ambassador role, Cathy said:
“I am delighted and honoured to be the first ambassador for Emmaus Cornwall. I feel very proud to be a part of such an incredible charity and I look forward to supporting them with their work.”
Cathy was the project director of adult literary charity, Quick Reads, for four years before stepping down to focus on her writing. She now regularly writes and speaks on life, death, love, and literature and is the author of The Last Act of Love, A Manual for Heartache and Dear Reader: The Comfort and Joy of Books, with Everyone Is Still Alive coming out in July.
There are 29 established Emmaus communities in the UK, currently supporting more than 850 people who have been homeless or socially excluded due to reasons including job loss, debt, relationship breakdowns, drug and alcohol addictions, and mental health issues.
Welcoming Cathy to Emmaus Cornwall, Chair of Trustees Sue Trewella, said:
“We are delighted to welcome Cathy as our ambassador. She is a gifted writer and has proved herself to also be a talented interviewer, as demonstrated when she interviewed fellow author Raynor Winn during our first online event. She will have no difficulty in putting across the message that Emmaus is needed in Cornwall to help alleviate the serious homelessness problem in the county.”