'A Friend'....

....has contacted me by mail from elsewhere in Exeter.
I would like to thank them for the brief information provided and will look a little deeper into the questions that it raises. Edited and further information added 23.55 today, highlighted in blue - You are correct re your comments relating to the person that you name. Given the company that this person is keeping I cannot help but view their involvement with cynicism, particularly as their current 'companys' actions are causing a great many problems to others.

For now -  Collecting 'Positions' and 'Important Sounding Job Titles' is viewed by some as an essential  part of community involvement, frequently creating/projecting a false impression of their true aims.  These roles and titles are displayed and compared like bizarre 'banners of success'.  "What? You didn't attend XYZ course/ seminar/pointless meeting that went absolutely b****y nowhere, again?  How can you possibly imagine that anyone will ever take you seriously if you don't attend a(nother) course, go to a(nother) meeting, get a(nother) certificate, pick up a(nother) environmentally friendly bag full of 'self-congratulatory, didn't we do well by our community' nonsense".  Not forgetting, of course, a(nother) crucial Title and/or Position! 
I've been there, done that and been given the Tshirts, mugs, pens, books, very expensive glossy handouts.  You name it and, within reason,  I've probably been given it, including all-expenses paid trips, funded by the taxpayers, to various parts of the UK ( the Seychelles would have been better, perhaps I should have 'hung on in there', I'm sure it's only a matter of time!).  Please forgive my rant, I have finally reached the point that it has been leading up to.

I  participated in this 'community circus', as many others have and do, naively believing that it would really make a difference in my community. These days I am much more selective which events I attend.  It soon became clear that there exists an unsavoury element of participants everywhere that use their so called 'community involvement' for personal gain and nothing more.  What is truly shocking (or is this yet more naivety on my part?) is the range of individuals and organisations for whom self-interest is their only focus, with the occasional 'crumb of largesse' served up to perpetuate the illusion that they really give a damn about the communities they profess to represent, and it is by no means limited to the voluntary sector. 
Rant definitely over :-).
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Less ranting next time, I promise!