A BELOVED community café in Southborough has been forced to close due to financial pressures.
The Bliss Café, which stands for Better Living in Southborough, was founded eight years ago by Elaine Laurence and run as a not-for-profi t company to help people from all different backgrounds with different needs.
With the help of volunteers, Bliss acted as a community centre and has been cherished by countless people.
But due to financial pressures the café has been forced to close and is faced with £3,500 worth of bills to pay.
But now a friend of Ms Laurence and volunteer at the café, Sophie Kersey, has set up a fundraising page to alleviate the burden on Bliss’s founder.
She said: “Hard times in the High Street led to Elaine and her husband working several jobs to help keep the Café going. Elaine recently took the tough decision to close at the end of July.
“A certain energy company hastened the end by cutting off the electricity over an unpaid bill, and slapping on huge punitive charges.
“She was serving the community in more ways than I could count. I have honestly seen her turn lives around, and a huge number of people rely on her. “So come on Southborough, can we help to pay off those final bills so Café Bliss can finish on a high note? Can we give something back to show Elaine we appreciate all she has done over the years?”
So far more than £590 has been raised by 30 donors. To support Ms Laurence and Bliss visit: www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/cafebliss
