The Rev ken Wright is probably a familiar face to anyone who has been a hospital patient.

Into his 80s he still has the vim and vigour of a more youthful man despite the fact that both he and his wife have had Covid.

Ken is a man of the people and a man not afraid to share his opinions but in a way that states his argument firmly but in a way that would make it difficult for “the other side” to take offence.

Most recently he appeared in the Ewanrigg, maryport “audio adventure” where around 200 people lent their voices to share their thoughts for the estate.

Within Ewanrigg is the Maryport hospital where he has been a chaplain for many years. He joined in the battle to save the beds and, in the audio, said he no longer visited the hospital as much as it did when it had inpatients.

He did, however, talk about how he could still go and talk to people who might be there for several hours for a transfusion of some kind.

“Sometimes people don’t want to talk about their fears with those closest to them, and find it easier to talk to a stranger. Sometimes I will hear what the patient says and then talk to the partner and sometimes that results in them talking to each other.”

Ken is a Rotarian and a former chairman of the Workington credit Union.

A gentleman and a gentle man, Ken will still not stand by to watch injustices and letters to the Times & Star have allowed him to express his opinions.

He entered the fray when when the Government decided not to provide free meals for children during school holidays -a decision they later reversed,

Ken wrote: “Some1.4 million children from poor households get free school meals. It is unlikely their circumstances will change for the better during school holidays, in spite of the increase in Universal Credit. It makes common-sense to continue this support. However, the effects of the pandemic have thrown many other families into extreme hardship and their children also need support. d.”

Whether it is posting an objection to plans to drive a road through Curwen Park,concerning himself with the sick, but also hospital staff, Ken Wright is a man for all seasons and a man for all people.