Special tribute to former student

On 6 June, City College Southampton held a 5-course charity dinner, raffle and officially opened the Joe Abbess memorial garden as tribute to former City College hospitality student, Joe Abbess, who tragically lost his life on 31st May last year in Bournemouth.

The evening’s special menu was designed by Joe’s family and college classmates in conjunction with award-winning chef Grahame Wickham. Support in preparation for the fine-dining event was volunteered by chefs from Essential Cuisine in addition to the expert support and guidance from our professional chef and front of house lecturers, enabling the hospitality students to deliver five courses of high-quality food and an outstanding service.

Former City College Governor, James Lapage, attended the charity dinner and commented: “It was an amazing event and a wonderful tribute to Joe. His fellow students and staff did him proud.”

The memorial garden, which includes a dedicated herb garden, was a collaborative project designed and created by both our hospitality and our carpentry & joinery students. All plants and gardening expertise were kindly provided by employer partner THE PIG Hotel. The garden will be a space for supporting students’ learning and well-being through gardening, as well as a beautiful quiet place for reflection.

Joanne Pengelly, City College’s Curriculum Area Manager for Service Industries, said: “I am so proud of all involved, thankful to all sponsors, and it has been an honour to have been a part of this special evening. Joe left such a gaping hole, it was so important to everyone to create a lasting legacy that can grow and develop over time.”

She continued: “The event was a ‘bittersweet’ evening; on the one hand a very sad memorial which took place at the time of the anniversary of Joe’s tragic death, so a difficult evening for Joe’s family, friends, teachers and students, but on the other hand an extremely proud event to celebrate the opening of the memorial herb garden and beginning of an adventurous ‘outdoor garden project’ in the years to come.

“The initiative to carve out a permanent legacy here at the college, which has been driven by student and staff commitment, presents us with a beautiful space to reflect and cultivate a sustainable garden for years to come. It has enabled us to remember Joe and acknowledge the huge contribution that he made to our college in the short time he was here.”

Joe’s family were overwhelmed with the tribute and his Mum, Vanessa Abbess said: “A massive thank you for a wonderful evening in memory of our son Joe. It was very special and truly heart-warming that everyone worked so hard to make it such a fantastic event. He would have loved it and been so proud! The herb garden is stunning and will be a lasting legacy. The meal absolutely incredible and definitely the finest of fine dining, so compliments to all the Chefs! Our family and both Air Ambulance charities are so very grateful for all the money raised.”

The fully-booked event raised over £4,000, all of which will go to the Hampshire & Isle of Wight and the Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance charities.