The wet weather did not deter Valero employees and contractors, many of whom were joined by family members, from giving the exterior of Monkton's Community Centre a fresh coat of paint recently.

While funds had already secured the paint, volunteer labour was needed to paint the outside of the building.

"We have recently gained funding to decorate the inside of the building and we were able to buy some paint for the exterior, but we did not have the funds to cover labour," said Dot Lloyd, of the Monkton Community Centre Committee. "We are really grateful to the Valero volunteers for giving their time and for the excellent job they did."

Richard Jelley, project engineer at Valero who co-ordinated the volunteering, expressed his thanks to all those who turned up to paint in less than ideal conditions, as well as to Mrs. Lloyd and her committee members who kept the painters going with bacon sandwiches."

• The Valero Volunteer Council considers requests for assistance on projects that can involve groups of personnel from the refinery that take place outside working hours.