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The monthly newsletter of the 4th Worcester Park Scout Group August/September 2003Sections
Keith DalyGROUP SCOUT LEADERFeteUnfortunately I was unable to attend the Summer Fete this year but everyone keeps telling me that I missed the best fete for some years. Fuller reports are later in this newsletter but it seems the fete was the most successful in terms of money raised and yet retained its enjoyment factor, which is very important to the Group. A number of new things were tried and most seem to have contributed to the success. Congratulations and a huge thank you goes to Mandy Caulder who managed this year's fete and who was responsible for many of the innovations. Thanks also to the hard working members of the Parents and Friends committee who helped organise the event and to all those who helped on stalls on the day. 70th Anniversary Fun DaySome 120 boys attended the 70th Anniversary Fun Day on 13th July and I would be prepared to wager that they all enjoyed the day. The event took quite a lot of organising and the day was very hot but it was worth all the trouble to see so many boys enjoying themselves. The behaviour of the boys was exemplary and we did not have one unsavoury incident all day. My thanks to all the boys who attended for the way they took part particularly the Scouts who helped the younger boys get from event to event and sometimes with the events. Thanks to all the leaders, Explorers, parents and fellowship members who organised and manned the 15 events the boys had to sample. Thanks also to the catering team from the Fellowship who managed to feed a hot meal to some 160+ people in a two-hour period in very hot conditions. John LongmanWho is John Longman I can hear many of you say. Well John is the gentleman who for many years now has maintained our three vehicles. He has done a magnificent job in keeping three fairly aged vehicles in safe roadworthy condition. He has other work to do but is always willing to act promptly to sort out our problems. The Group Executive thought it was time that John's contribution was recognised so we recently presented him with a Thanks Badge together with a small gift from the Group. May I add my thanks to John for all he has done for the Group and hopefully all he will do in the future. ASPEN COLONYAnne Mays (MAYO), Carol Salter (HOLLY)Well, we thought things would begin to go a little slower this month, but we couldn't have been more wrong. Firstly, we said a sad farewell to Matthew Bowers; he has now joined Brownsea Cub Pack and we understand he is doing really well. On June 2nd we made some crowns for Coronation Day, we put them on our notice board for all to see as they were very decorative. Most of the boys now have their Faith Badge and their Animal Friend Badge. We borrowed the District Parachute and had great fun with it. We went for a walk down to Worcester Park High Street and bought lollies in Waitrose and sat in the car park and ate them, as it was so hot. On the way we were looking for objects and names of things to spell the word BEAVERS. We split into three teams and all of us found lots of names and things to spell Beavers. For instance B - Balmoral Road; E - Edward; A - aerial; V - video shop; E - eagle (picture); R - rosebush; S - stones and many more. It was a very good exercise and thoroughly enjoyed by all. We made Father's Day cards. We had a second visit to Birch Colony and a successful visit from Pets World in Worcester Park (thank you Edward Howford for writing the 'thank you' letter for Aspen Colony to the shop). The boys who were able to attend gained a good understanding of looking after small animals and learning that they are a responsibility. As it was Prince William's 21st birthday this month as well, we made a paper plate college of Prince William and put them on our board. We had to write on the plate who it was as to the average eye it might not have been very recognisable - still we had a good time drawing them. We have been pond dipping at the Ecology Centre in Carshalton - A BIG THANK YOU TO MR O'DONNELL (Callum's Dad) for driving the bus for us. I think everyone enjoyed themselves. We have had a Group Fete and we would like to say 'thank you' to everyone who sent down gifts and sold programmes and anyone who helped in any way including making cakes. We thought the Fete was a great success and we would like to say 'thank you' to Mandy for organising it and also for supplying the posters for all the stalls explaining what we were doing and how much it cost; it was a great help. Thank you also for left over sweets, which we used for the Group Fun Day. Last but by no means least our Beaver Fun Day Trip on the train and tram to Frylands Wood, New Addington. What a day! What an experience! Once we arrived we had a very interesting walk down a very steep hill walked through the open woodlands to the campsite. I must say we did have a laugh, you see we travelled all the way with Cedar Colony and their parents so there was quite a crowd. Our fantastic parents and helpers consisted of Mr and Mrs Lewis; Mrs Barber; Mr Dukes; Philip and Tom, our scouts - 'thank you' to all of you; Holly, myself and a friend of mine. It was a lovely sunny day and we did quite a lot but ran out of time. One of the activities was making swords and shields but of course by the time we got there all the materials had run out and it was probably the most popular event, SO!!!!!!!! Mr Dukes and Mr Lewis have kindly made us some swords and shields and all we have to do is paint and decorate them. How wonderful of them! Mr Dukes has also agreed to help the boys with their Computer Skills Badge. IF THERE ARE ANY DADS OR MUMS OUT THERE WHO CAN OFFER THEIR SERVICES OR KNOWLEDGE IN ANY SHAPE OR FORM, PLEASE LET US KNOW. WE WOULD APPRECIATE ANY NURSES, RECEPTIONISTS, PLUMBERS, ELECTRICIANS, FIREMEN, POLICEMEN, INDEED ANYTHING AT ALL. It will help the boys broaden their knowledge and help towards the next group of badges. Please don't be shy. If anyone knows anything about blind or deaf people we would be very interested. I forgot to mention that we had to walk all the way back through the open woodland and up a very steep hill and we did it in record time thanks to the pace of the Scouts. Good job we had extra water. Well, that's it for this month; as you can see we do as much as we can for the boys but we are always looking for help no matter how small just to vary our programme. BIRCH COLONYAnne Richardson (MAPLE), Sheila Kinton (BAGHEERA)The highlight of the month was a visit from Pets Place in Worcester Park. Two gentlemen brought along a kitten, a rabbit, a guinea pig, a budgie, a gerbil and a lizard. They told us about what they eat and how to look after them. Anne and Carol joined us with some of the boys from Aspen Colony. We've also made a 'summer' collage for our notice board, had an evening on the field playing with the parachute, talked about home safety and went on a local knowledge walk around Worcester Park. Since the last report Mrs Wade has helped the boys with their IT Badge and we will be awarding the badges soon. Aaron Wade, Bryn Chittock, Alex Thompson, Thomas Sharpe, William Singer, Jamie Scarborough, Kye Whelan, Miles Mitchell, Stuart Grigg and Mark Dawson have all received their Animal Friend Badges. They all worked hard for them, well done! Scott Marshall has now been invested and a new boy, Lewis Webb, has joined us. Angela Wells, who has been helping us regularly for two years, has decided to leave as her son Jack is moving on - thanks for all her help and hard work. We're pleased to say that Mrs Yelf has taken over from her and we've also been joined by John Williams from the Explorer Unit who's helping us for a few months, so we are well off for adult helpers at the moment. CEDAR COLONYValerie Clarkson (CHIPMUNK)This month has been very busy and very varied. We had a lovely gentleman and his wife, Mr and Mrs Phillip Croach, come down to see us. Phillip is a man even older than I am and he is totally blind. He came along to tell us about his cycle ride along the river Nile in Egypt. He was the 'rear' of a tandem. William Eyre's dad was at the front. They did this ride to raise money for charity, 100 miles a day and lots of tales to tell, friends made and sounds and smells like nowhere else in the world; a very interesting meeting. Then on Sunday we went to the District Beaver Fun day at Frylands Wood; two trams and a train for the journey, then lots of activities including archery, climbing wall, giant water pistols, gap guns, bouncy castle, yes/no interlude, medieval enactment with all the boys as soldiers, a visit to the tuck shop and lunch. Actually, I think we did more but I cannot remember what! Thank you to Mathew Coate's dad for coming with us. The next Friday we took the boys to the High Street to sell fete programmes and we made £87.00, thanks to the mothers who stepped in at the eleventh hour to help with this - oh! You're the same ones coming on our Beaver sleepover. Then we started working for our Scouts' Own, what a drudge but it's almost over and will be perfect and finished by the time you read this. Scott Ward will have received his Baden Powell Bronze Award. Jack Francis, Joshua Peel, Elliott Williams and Sam Mullins, who have been linking, will have all moved up to Brownsea Cubs. These four have been excellent Beavers who have between them attended 11 sleepovers with me. They have been warmly welcomed by the Cubs and really enjoyed their link meetings and have been asked to go to Cub camp in the summer, well done. However, we've got our sleepover first! Well done to Mandy Caulder for master minding the summer fete and thank you to all who brought in sweets for our stall. We had the most ever! I could not stay past 2 o'clock, but it did all seem to be going brilliantly. Thank you so much to Lorraine Tappendon and Alison Carley, who 'glided over' Pimms in hand, very lady like and summery to take over from me - who felt like a bag lady, clutching my carriers, but my son left our coconuts under the table. I must also say well done and thank you to Noo, who came with Kit and myself to help on what was a difficult day for us. ANGLIA PACKBrenda Hunt (AKELA)We all celebrated Steve's 'special' birthday, organised by Clair. The Cubs enjoyed lots of games and consumed lots of food and drink. The following week the Cubs enjoyed an evening out at the Westcroft Leisure Centre swimming baths. Having held the mat ball trophy for two years, unfortunately we did not do so well this year, but the boys still had fun and competed very well. Thank you to those that took part. On the 22nd June the Cubs attended a Fun day at Gillwell Park. It was a brilliant day with lots of activities (go-carts, fishing water slides, bouncy castles) and the leaders had fun as well. A big thank you to Peter and Steve from Sutton Cycling for organising a cycling training event for the boys followed by a fun game. Many thanks to all the parents for the toy donations. Very well done to Peter and Jonathon Caulder who each ran a stall and raised £50 between them. Finally a big thank you to Mandy Caulder for organising such an enjoyable and successful summer fete. BROWNSEA PACKLes Prescott (KERICK)As Keith mentioned last month, the mantle of Leadership of Brownsea Pack has now passed to me. I am very grateful to the team of helpers: Sally, John, Ben and Michael. We also now have the assistance of Harry Dunne, a former Cub in the Pack, and we are very grateful that he has offered his assistance. We are also grateful to Ben for agreeing to take out an Assistant Cub Scout Leader's warrant. Congratulations to the many Cubs in the Pack who have gained their Fitness, Caring and Global challenges. We've put in a lot of effort during Pack meetings and at home to complete these awards. Our first Buddy Badge was presented to Joss Newman during the month. Like all the other Cub Packs in the District, I suspect, we practised hard for the District Mat ball competition, which was held in Cheam Recreation Ground. We came third in our league, just one place short of the semi-finals. Well done, Cubs. While we were practising at headquarters, Alan Avery allowed the Cubs to use the aerial runway that he and the Scouts had erected in the field earlier in the week. Great fun and thanks, Alan and the Scouts. We spent an evening learning about lighting wood fires and then the Cubs cooked sausages over the fires and ate them with hot-dog rolls and tomato ketchup! Delicious! Our former Akela, Hazel, ran an evening for us based on healthy eating and the sense of taste. Not many Cubs could tell the difference between full-fat and healthy eating version of various foods...... Thanks very much to the mums of Nathan Dunne, Kyle Merson and Grant Hamilton who helped run our cake stall at the Summer Fair. At the Fair, the Pack entered a tug-of-war team and they won all four matches. Well done, Cubs. Congratulations to former helper of Brownsea Pack, Anthony Ellis, on his recent marriage to Rachel. We wish them well. We now look forward to our Summer Camp. CHARTERHOUSE PACKMargaret Pennington (AKELA)At the beginning of May the sixers and seconders set off on a glorious sunny day to Bentley Copse near Shere for a District organised camp. After they put up their tent (it stayed up both nights) the fun started. There was rifle shooting, archery, assault course, go carts, navigation course, eating washing up backwoods cooking, campfire, competitions of strength, a very dark wide game (miles away from their tent), sleeping, shopping, eating (it's worth a second mention - they did lots of it!). We are grateful to Phil and the District team for organising the event. It makes our lives much easier to just turn up and put up a tent or two. Yes, Ian happily slept in his tent. Kay and I did have a tent each to sleep in, I won't bore you with what it was like but it was similar to the last time. The boys made us very proud by being very sensible late at night and very early in the morning when the neighbouring campsite seemed to think football at 5am was reasonable!!!
Our own camp leapt upon us at the end of May and on yet another glorious morning we set off to Fernycrofts in Hampshire. After we arrived on site and found out which sixes the boys were in, we had a very hectic time. We managed to fit in a tour of the site before lunch and then it was onto badge work, which included making gadgets.
Then we had archery before dinner and after washing up the boys went on a ramble in the local area. On Wednesday we went to the Isle of Wight, ate, then spent money at Alum Bay before travelling to Colwell Bay for time on the beach, rock pools, sand castles, cricket - that sort of thing. Brenda (bless her) organised the cooking of pudding on the beach. Take fruit, add chocolate and marshmallows, wrap in foil and cook on a BBQ. Nothing compares - it was delicious (sandy, but delicious). While the boys were eating their pudding they chose their main course from a menu supplied by the restaurant at the end of the beach. We then placed our order and agreed a time to arrive to eat it. It was truly glorious, eating overlooking the beach at 7pm in the sunshine. After food, we made our way back to the campsite for hot chocolate, showers (yes) and bed. Thursday (another beautiful day) saw the sandwich factory in full swing again while the boys sorted themselves out ready for a day at Paultons Adventure Park. The boys spent all day queuing for rides and generally enjoying themselves and letting off steam.
On Friday after breakfast all the boys tackled the climbing wall and most abseiled down the other side. More badge work was completed so that the Campers are ready for their second camp and the Adventurers are almost ready for the challenge of Scouts. After lunch we had a swimming session at the local pool in Applemore and on our return to the campsite we decided that it was too hot for camp sports. Once the sun had gone down and it cooled a little there was just enough time for the inter six football competition. After dinner we had a very much-shortened campfire as the midges were eating us, in spite of being near the fire and liberally sprayed with repellent. On Saturday we packed up all the kit and tents and after presentations we came home. Have you seen our wonderful points board? Tuesday 27th May 2003 We got to HQ to go to camp. Before we went on the minibus we had a photo taken. We got to the New Forest Fernycrofts. We got out of our uniform and changed into normal clothes. Then we walked around the campsite. Then we sorted out our tents and kit. Then we did gadgets. We went to the woodpile to get some wood. We made a bin, a welly rack and a shoe rack. Then we had lunch. We did badge work and looked at map symbols and planned our ramble for that night. Then we did archery. I nearly hit the balloon twice. Then we had dinner. We had meat pie, mashed potato, carrots and peas and for dessert, peaches and cream and I ate the lot. Then we did flag down and then supper. Then we washed and went to bed. By Will H Tuesday 27th May We drove to the campsite and got into our playing clothes. We walked around the campsite. Then we sorted our kits out. Just before we had lunch we done gadgets. We made a welly rack, bin and shoe rack. We made it all out of wood that we got from the woodpile. Then we had lunch. For lunch we had hot dogs for main course and for dessert we had peaches and cream. The food went straight down my mouth through my neck and into my stomach. By Scott Ward Tuesday 27th May We got in the minibus and we waved goodbye to our parents who were sad to see us go. We got to the campsite and we had to go to our tent. We had names, they were owls, ponies and squirrels. I was in owls. We set out sleeping bags for the night. We done gadgets where we made a welly and shoe stand and a rubbish bin. In the afternoon we tried archery. In one shot I nearly hit the target. It just missed. We had a great first day of camp. By Roy Dear Diary Tuesday We went to HQ at 9am to go to camp. When we got to camp we found out that Raksha had made a chart of all three sixes, squirrels, owls and ponies, which I was in. We also went for a walk and then had lunch then we went to the lake and then Ian got his foot stuck in mud - wet mud and then we went back to camp and had supper, that is hot chocolate and cake and then we all went to sleep. Wednesday On Wednesday we went on a ferry to the Isle of Wight. We all went to a special shopping centre and got some stuff and then went to the beach and made sandcastles, hunted for crabs and paddled and then went home. By Charlie Foley Tuesday 27th May 2003 Dear Diary On Tuesday I dragged myself out of bed and down to HQ. Everyone climbed onto the minibus and drove towards Fernycrofts campsite in the New Forest. When we got here we were told which tents we were in and sorted out kit. We were introduced to Fernycrofts campsite and went on a tour. After the tour we came back and started building camp gadgets - a shoe rack and sign. After the gadgets we had a very big lunch and pudding. Later after lunch we did some badge work. We studied maps and talked about walking in those different directions. After badge work we went to the archery range. I fired an arrow but it managed to hit the centre circle but not the balloon! After doing archery we had a delicious meal - dinner. Later on we went out for a long hike. By Nicholas Hutton My thanks must go to the team who give up a week of their own holiday entitlement and pay for the privilege of going to camp to ensure the safety and enjoyment of your sons. Fred and Eddie over and above helping the boys, drive us around and about during the week. Ian, Amber, Kay, Eddie, Sue and Fred, with some help from the rest of us, train the boys in the art of living in a tent with other boys and no mum to clear up after them. Brenda cooks, cleans and deals with all our first aid needs. She also guards our treasures and lends a shoulder if we need it. Richard and Richard are coming along nicely and a lot of the time don't need to be reminded of jobs needing to be done. Thanks also to Tom, Tom, Mike, Tina, Pat, Graham, Graham, Nicholas and Oliver who come along at the beginning and end of camp to help us set up and pack up and of course extra thanks must go to the boys themselves. They really were excellent and a credit to their parents. As ambassadors of Scouting they send out a very positive message to all who see them. The reason our camp was at half term rather than in the summer holidays this year is because Ian and Amber are getting married during the long holiday and we wish tem well in the future. After camp there was no time to rest up and wonder what to do next as we were straight in to mat ball practice. Every Wednesday competition was fierce and the weather was kind most weeks. Two teams had extra training down the field one Sunday afternoon and all the effort showed on the evening that the boys took on the rest of the District. After a series of hard fought games one of the teams won through to the semi-final. Unfortunately they lost that but showed true sportsmanship. Very well done boys! The following Wednesday there just had to be a semi party to celebrate their achievement. On the Tuesday before the Fete, Purple Troop invited the boys from the Pack to join them cooking pizzas over wood fires. It was an excellent evening; everyone tasted the finished products and almost everyone helped with the washing up. Thank you to Alan, Peter, Jeff and all at Purple Troop. Well done to all of you who turned up for the Group's AGM. On another lovely day we were able to use the field for the BBQ and while we were sitting there those who attended decided that under Mike's guidance something drastic had to be done about the part of the grounds that Charterhouse parents are responsible for. The outcome was that 15 boys were represented on a gardening evening on the night that the boys were celebrating getting to the semi-finals of the District mat ball competition. An enormous effort went into creating a beautiful garden all ready for the Fete. On the second evening allocated for gardening and setting up for the Fete many parents turned up to offer support but rain meant that only a few brave souls worked outside. Everyone else helped with organising the Pack stall, packing baskets of toiletries, wrapping teddies in bags, etc to ensure that along with very generous donation, Charterhouse tombola was the biggest and best yet - it raised over £430 on the day. Thank you to all who worked and contributed to the gardening and to the tombola. Before the Fete, as well as selling lots of programmes, we had a good turn out of parents and boys to help with setting up and on the day itself we were very proud of you all setting up, manning stalls, clearing up and generally supporting the Group. Although a lot of money was raised on the day, the proudest moment for me was handing in the £24 earned by Charterhouse boys' efforts. The golf games was entirely their responsibility and with some clerical help from Tina the boys showed what can be done - very, very well done to you all!! On top of running their own stall, the boys put forward two tug-of-war teams for the Group competition on the day and almost everyone was in uniform. My final thanks go to Sue for typing this and for the whole production team down the line who have to deal with it before you read it. PURPLE TROOPAlan Avery (Scout Leader)At the end of June, 14 lads from the Troop together with Silver Troop went to Thames Young Mariners for a water activity weekend. I am pleased to say I had the sun-cream out all weekend and a superb time was had by everyone and we came runners up in the 'free 4 all' on Sunday afternoon and gained a £20 prize or discount if we use the place again. My thanks to Joe for catering, Pauls Green and Stansbridge and Steph for this help. I was pleased to present James Cole with his Chief Scouts Award at Scouts' Own. On the Fun day we made twists for everyone with varying degrees of quality - but didn't we make a lot of dough! My thanks to Richard Blackwell, Simon Mayhew and of course our Group President, Peter Kinton, for their assistance. During the month we had an interpatrol football competition on Epsom Downs, went cycling down the Thames from Kingston, sold Fete programmes (what a joy!) and constructed an aerial runway. We were pleased to welcome Charterhouse Pack to cook pizzas (Mama Mias, of course!) on open fires. It would have helped if some lads paid heed to the instructions that were given out, but it was a good evening. Also seven lads have gained their Athletes Badge run by the District. They all fell in!
SILVER TROOPPaul Green (Scout Leader)No news item this month. EXPLORER UNITAlan Avery (Explorer Scout Leader)
We went over to the Sutton Rangers to enjoy a barbeque and a bouncy burger! The lads also went on a cycle ride and visited us at Thames Young Mariners at the Scout water weekend. We also put up the swing boats, painted them some dubious colours and manned them for the Fete and the 70th Anniversary Fun day. My thanks to most of the lads assisting at these events. We have changed venue for our Summer Expedition and are going to Austria and the Lago Di Garda in Italy - should be good! Weather permitting we will do the usual 4-day expedition in the Austrian Alps. We had an evening on the aerial runway on the field - seems very popular and everyone enjoyed it.
PARENTS & FRIENDSRichard Marston (Chairman)How are we doing?At the time of writing the final profit figure from the fete is not available but early estimates indicate that our total profit for the year should now have passed £6,000. This impressive figure leaves us ahead of budget with a further £2,500 to raise by the end of the year. The actual profit figure from the fete will be published on the Group website when the final bills and programme money have been received. Summer Fete 5th JulyGraham Hutton (vice-chairman P&F Committee) Having fixed the weather with the powers that be the Parents & Friend's Committee sat back and relaxed whilst their new secret weapon went into action. Mandy Caulder, a newly enlisted member, took on board the management of the fête and delivered a superb job and a fête to be remembered. In management terms this is the largest operation the P&F Committee take on and it takes a massive effort. Well-done Mandy. We had some wonderful new innovations as well as our stalwarts. The magician was great. We also saw the welcome return of the swing boats, which are likely to have been newly painted by the Explorer Unit by the time you read this. Well-done Explorer Unit and their stalwart leader, Alan Avery. I don't think I saw a break in use on the swing boats the whole afternoon. Mind you the bingo seemed to be its usual hive of activity. Silver Troop deserve special mention for running two stalls, one being the innovative beer tent, which I believe added to the 'village fête' atmosphere. It was great seeing so many leaders working with parents & friends and where would we have been without the Fellowship. Thanks to all the people who manned stalls and made the day. Some people worked without a break the whole day, for which the P&F and ultimately the boys are very grateful. Figures are not finalised yet but we are hoping for well over £3,000. May I take the blame for not providing enough tea to stall holders. Sorry about that but we will get it right next year. If you have any constructive ideas please write them down and give them to me as soon as possible. Do not wait for the week before next year's fête. We need those ideas now. On behalf of the P&F my thanks to all the helpers who worked tirelessly the week before getting ready for the day and a special thanks to Charterhouse who built such a lovely rockery. Thank you to all those that worked throughout the day on stalls, the gate, teas, etc and afterwards in packing away. Thanks to all those that came and participated. For those of you at the end young Richard Moverley escaped with minor injuries from his collision with the handcart. As a consequence of this accident though no child under scout age will be allowed to operate or ride on the carts at a P&F event in the future. The paperwork is a big burden. Coming SoonFollowing the Fete the P&F committee is taking a well earned, and much needed, rest until the Jumble Sales on the 4th and 11th October. Planning work will of course continue. We look forward to some new parents coming forward to help fulfill their commitment to the Group (and have some fun) during the next fundraising season. Internet www.4wp.org.uk.The website passed an important milestone during June when it passed 1000 hits. Income during the month was boosted by those sensible people who bought copies of the new Harry Potter book at half-price. New shopping links have been added to the site so you can now buy electrical goods (think of the commission we would get on your new television or washing machine!) and bouquets of flowers in addition to the CDs, DVDs, books, wine, flights etc. already on offer. All are offering prices that will beat the High Street shops and provide income for the Group at the same time. If you want back copies of this newsletter or would like a colour copy of any of the photographs that have appeared in it you can find them on the website. Comments or suggestions?Your views enable the Parents and Friends Committee to schedule events you want to attend, and improve existing events. Please contact me via p-and-f(at)4wp.org.uk or by telephone on 020 8337 2641. If you would like to get more involved by attending the monthly committee meetings we will be pleased to see you. FELLOWSHIPGraham SmithMy thanks to Geoff Morris for chairing in my absence, the meeting on the 29th May. The Group Chairman, Ray Hammett, reported on the last Group Executive meeting and details were finalised for the catering arrangements following the AGM on 8th June. Fellowship assistance at the Summer Fete on 5th July was discussed, particularly regarding the plant stall (which is traditionally manned by some of our lady members) and the building and manning of the monkey bridge. There was further mention of the Fellowship's participation on the Group's Fun day on 13th July where we have been asked to arrange for the catering. Following the business part of the evening all those attending had the pleasure of listening to Shirley and Peter Cornish talk about the project they both undertook in Namibia. The talk was supported by both photos and mementos and prompted many questions from the audience. As far as recent Group activities are concerned, help was given as usual at the two Jumble Sales in May and to a limited extent on the Work Morning on Sunday 25th May. Our June meeting on the 26th took the form of a walk around Cheam conducted by Ron Kinton. It started with a visit to the service wing at Nonsuch Mansion, which had kindly been opened especially for us by Gerald Smith and, whilst that part of the Mansion is not entirely unknown to several members of the Fellowship, it proved a most interesting half hour or so for all of us looking at the wide range of exhibits on show. We continued with a walk around Cheam Village giving particular attention to the lovely old cottages in Parkside by Whitehall. The walk ended in the churchyard of St Dunstan's where we also held an impromptu 'business' meeting to discuss our participation in the Group Fete and Fun Day. Our thanks were expressed to Ron for having arranged a most enjoyable evening - which ended with some traditional refreshment in the local hostelry. Some Fellowship members were fully occupied on the evenings immediately prior to the Summer Fete, erecting both the monkey bridge and tentage, whilst the table tennis party 'turned to' after the Wednesday morning session and cut back some of the shrubbery bordering the field. On the day of the Fete there was a very strong representation in the running of certain stalls and, of course, the monkey bridge itself which continues to be such a great attraction for youngsters. Our July meeting on the 31st is to be a boule competition run by Colin and Pam Barnard - 7.30pm on the Field, whilst on the 28th August John and Bridget Green host our annual BBQ - 7.30pm at 24 Sterry Drive, Ewell.
Information for October 2003 Newsletter to be with Keith Daly by Monday 8th September
This page was last updated on 27 September 2003 |
