It has been a big year for popular Bristol vendor Paul Jones. This summer the 44-year-old was selected to sell the magazine at Glastonbury, a brand-new pitch at the world’s biggest musical festival.
And this Christmas, Paul will be going back to Leicester to spend Christmas with his estranged family, having recently mended fences and healed old wounds. It’s the first time Paul will have spent time with his family in two years.
“I haven’t been in contact with them for a while now, but I’m really excited and eagerly looking forward to spending some time with them all,” he said.
Martha Luke, service broker for The Big Issue Foundation says many vendors struggle with the broken family ties. She hailed the “positive changes” Paul has made this year. He learned how to build a bike at the Earn-a-Bike project run by the Bristol Bike Project, and is also now a regular at Windmill Hill city farm as volunteer gardener.
“I’ve really enjoyed working with Paul, and I am so excited for him to be going home this Christmas to spend it with his family,” said Martha.
