Oral history interview with Bruce Thompson

Interview: 54 minutes 14 seconds

Rev Bruce Thompson is married and currently lives in Lincoln where he is Chair of Lincolnshire Methodist District. Bruce was Minister of Timperley Methodist Church in 1999 when the British government made the decision to evacuate Kosovars as part of the global humanitarian response to help the survivors from the war in Kosovo, forced out off their own land. The North West was designated the location for refugees where at least one family member had a special need: often medical. Bruce suggested to his local authority, Trafford MBC, that a disused building in his area could be converted for incoming families. This was accepted and the church and the wider community got to work. Families started to arrive, mainly from the border camps, in May 1999. The last family to arrive were the Bogujevcis which included five injured children and two traumatised, widowed fathers. Bruce visited all the families, almost daily, and played a huge part in their recovery. His church, Timperley Methodist, became the focus for games, trips, friendships and integration with local people. Bruce was later invited to Kosovo by his friends and also wrote a book “Shelter from the storm” containing several refugees’ biographies, and his own personal journey.

In this interview Rev. Bruce Thompson talks about helping to set up a refugee reception centre in Manchester during the Kosovan war and his deep friendships with the people he met there and his invitation to Kosovo.