A driving force
 

By Simon Heart

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For Mike Sharkey, Sunday 25 November last year brought an occasion he looks back on with pride but also poignancy.

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During choral evening prayer at the Metropolitan Cathedral, he received the Pontifical Order of Saint Gregory the Great. It was one of three papal knighthoods conferred – with Claire Reilly and Michael Byrne the other recipients – and in Mike’s case, the reason was his support for numerous parish and community projects across the Archdiocese of Liverpool, especially in Wigan, as well as the #Liverpool4Ukraine aid project.

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“It was an absolute honour to be recognised by Malcolm, our former Archbishop, and then obviously awarded it by our current Archbishop, John,” he reflects, adding that the poignancy was down to the presence of his mother, Maureen. For decades Maureen and Derek Sharkey, Mike’s father, ran two charity shops in Wigan which raised over £1m to send pilgrims to Lourdes, notably on Jumbulance trips. Derek received his medal posthumously after he passed away last March; Maureen, who is living with dementia, was wearing hers at the cathedral on 25 November. “To actually have Mum with me and for to have her medal on and me mine, that was a special moment,” says Mike.

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The 57-year-old has followed his parents’ example admirably. As CEO of Greenmount Projects, a Wigan-based construction company that does a range of jobs for the archdiocese, he plays a leading role in the Liverpool4Ukraine campaign.

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He remembers recounting to his mother a Ukraine discussion with a colleague from the archdiocese and her reply: “Well, let’s send some stuff then.” Hence, as he explains, “I spoke to the archdiocese, including Father Sean Riley and the surveyors that I work with, and said, ‘We need to do something’.”

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It was in March 2022 that the first aid convoy left Liverpool for the five-and-a-half day round trip to the Polish-Ukrainian border. He estimates that Greenmount Projects have ‘donated £100,000 throughout this campaign’ and cites the fundraising efforts along the way. “We’ve done walks, we’ve done the Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge, we’ve done raffles. We’ve raised approximately £30-40,000 through our staff, but also the community of Wigan and Leigh has got behind this. The council, the college, and Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust – our biggest providers – have really assisted and a lot of businesses as well.”

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Mike drove a truck in the first six convoys. For safety reasons, the last three aid deliveries (including one in December) were made by a Polish contractor, though he hopes to lead the next convoy in the springtime – and reconnect with Dr Andrew Quinlan and others from the Holy Spirit Seminary in the Ukrainian diocese of Sambir-Drohobych.

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A force of nature is one way to describe this one-time semi-professional rugby league player, who captained Lancashire and played for Wigan St Patrick’s. His 2026 plans with Team Wigan & Leigh – a fundraising group he set up in 2021 – include a Hadrian’s Wall trek and another Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge.

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It is no surprise to hear he has received a Heart of the Community award from Wigan Council given his company’s deep commitment to the town, illustrated, for example, by their sponsorship – visible on the sleeves and back respectively – of both Wigan Warriors and Wigan Athletic. They also sponsor grassroots sports teams.

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Moreover, they work closely with local charities including The Brick (for homeless people) and Daffodil Dreams (for disadvantaged families), as well as with Wigan & Leigh Hospice. On the day we are speaking, through a collaboration with charity partners, Mike has over 300 Christmas hampers in the Greenmount Project offices, waiting to be delivered to the disadvantaged.

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“I always tell my staff we’re the lucky ones so let’s get out there and do something for people that are less fortunate,’ says Mike. ‘What we’ve done throughout the year, excluding the Christmas appeal, has come to approximately £283,000, supporting local schools, football clubs, charity events.”

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One recent beneficiary was St John Fisher High School, his alma mater, which received £5,000 to send pupils to Lourdes.

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He adds: “We’ve got probably 35 staff in the office, probably 20-30 out on site, and all these people are doing walks and putting their hands in their pockets for raffle tickets and events. What I’d add about the papal medal, therefore, is that it was Mike Sharkey and also Greenmount Projects that received the award.”