WADHURST TOWN IN FOCUS - September 2008
Hospice in the Weald , Wadhurst
The July coffee morning, held courtesy of Eileen Hemsley, raised a total of £172.50.
Many thanks to everyone who supported the morning. If anyone would like to
host a coffee morning in the future, please contact Val Tunbridge (01892-782498).
We have our own coffee cups and saucers, and it is always enjoyable to have
new venues.
Very special congratulations are due to Eileen Hemsley who has raised over £1000
for Hospice in the Weald in the last two years through the sale of her handmade
greetings cards. The cards are beautifully made and have brought much pleasure
to many people.
OPEN CIRCLE
Too old for Sticky Fingers and OASTies? Too young at heart for Cameo Club?
But in need of a bit of cheerful company, coffee and a chat? Why not come
along to Open Circle? We meet on the fourth Friday of each month at Carillon
Cottage, 10.00 to 11.30am.
WADHURST FOOTPATHS SOCIETY
Members and friends meet on the last Sunday of each month in the car park behind
One Stop, Washwell Lane, Wadhurst at 2.00pm. The next walk will be on 28th
Sept - Witherenden Hill Circular.
WADHURST WINEMAKERS CIRCLE
The next Friday evening meeting at the Recreation Ground is on 5th September.
Contact Ruth for details on 750674.
KENT & SUSSEX BORDER LIONS CLUB
We meet every third Wednesday at Hurst Green Village Hall, all are welcome.
Ring David Francis on 01580 200672 for more information.
Mayfield and District U3A
Mayfield & District U3A will meet on Thursday 18th September at 2pm, in
Mayfield Memorial Hall, when Pat Wright will talk about Buckingham Palace.
WADHURST GARDENING ASSOCIATION
Next meeting 8th September in St. George’s Hall
Mary Terry (01892 783154)
ST JOHN AMBULANCE WADHURST DIVISION will be having a Christmas Craft Sale on 29th November at Commemoration Hall. Table Tops are for sale at £10 for one or £15 for two. We hope to have all kinds of crafts. Doors open 9-30am to 12noon, entrance by donation. to book telephone Cindy 01892784714 or Marge 01580200378.
WADHURST BRIDGE CLUB
New Members are most welcome to join a group of friendly players of varying
standards.
Help and some tuition is given. Friday afternoons 2.00 to 5.00pm at Sparrows
Green Pavilion.
Telephone Margaret McAuley on 01435 867824 or 07964 347898.
CARE FOR THE CARERS
Are you caring for a relative or friend? Would you like to meet other carers
for a coffee and a chat? Then come along to our monthly meeting at Carillon
Cottage, every third Thursday from 10.30am - 12 noon. For further details please
contact Sarah Burchett (01323 738390).
PARENTS AND TODDLERS GROUP
Meetings are held every Monday at St George’s Hall from 9.30am. Everyone welcome!
For further details please contact Nina on 01580 201158.
Tea with Tigger
Bring your babies and toddlers for a chat over a cup of tea and biscuits on
Tuesdays from
2.00 to 4.00pm at Carillon Cottage. For further information contact Carillon
Cottage,
Tel 01892 785658.
Stonegate Farmers Market
Please note the new time for July and September onwards is 10.00 to 12.00 (not
12.30) For information call 01580 200386.
WADHURST ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
Meetings 3rd Wednesday every month begin at 7.30pm although members are invited
to arrive any time after 7.00pm. This is a good time to exchange ideas and
discuss problems. The venue as always is in the Upper Room of the Methodist
Church at the east end of Wadhurst Lower High Street, opposite Uplands College.
(For those with SatNav – the Post code is TN5 6AX)
AFTERNOON FELLOWSHIP
Meets on the last Thursday of every month at 2.30pm in St George’s Hall.
NEW WADHURST RESIDENTS ASSOCIATION
Following our AGM in July it was decided to hold our meetings every 2 months
alternating with an evening meeting and a morning meeting. The first evening
meeting will therefore be held at 7.30 pm on Thursday 11 September at St.
Georges Hall, Sparrows Green. We look forward to seeing some new faces- why
not come along! For more information contact 01892 782294.
MINI MARKET in the Methodist Church will be held on Saturday 6th September from 9.30-11am. All the proceeds will got to the Tearfund appeal for Ethiopia to relieve famine at a time when we are thinking about harvest thanksgiving.
WADHURST INDEPENDENT PHOTOGRAPHERS
WIP meets every second Tuesday of each month, at 7.30pm, upstairs in The Greyhound
Pub, Wadhurst.
FAMILY SUPPORT WORK - F.S.W.
Knowles tooth Open Day - Sunday 7th September 2 - 5 p.m.
Service of Thanksgiving & Celebration - Tuesday 30th September at Chichester
Cathedral for the work of F.S.W.
Mammoth Book Sale - Friday 14th/Saturday 15th November at Knowles Tooth.
Boxes will be placed in Wadhurst/Stonegate/Tidebrook Churches and at Carillon
Cottage by mid September, please start sorting now and give as generously as
you can.
The MULLINS MEMORIAL FUND supports people living in the parish of Wadhurst.
The help provided is usually practical, but may occasionally come in some different
form in order to make someone’s life easier. Perhaps you are the person who
could do with help or you know someone else who would benefit from our support.
This is a small local charity able to continue working thanks to the generosity
of others and our own fund-raising efforts. Contact one of the Office Bearers
on 782181, 782835 or 783212.
Be assured that whatever we do is done in complete confidentiality.
The next major fund-raising activity is the Farmers Market on Friday 24th October
from 8.30 am on the forecourt of the Commemoration Hall Any contributions
to the market of home-made or home-grown products would be gratefully received
so that we can have enough funds to be able to respond immediately to someone’s
call for help. Also, please put the date in your diary so that you can come
and buy and have warming refreshments. That is followed by the ever-popular,
sometimes maddening annual Christmas Quiz published on 1st December. Your
support of these two initiatives would be gratefully accepted.
WADHURST TREFOIL GUILD
The next get-together will be on 8th September for a fish & chip lunch
in Hastings. At the August meeting, members were enthralled and entertained
by Barbara Liddle, who read and talked about poetry.
WADHURST TWINNING ASSOCIATION has a group travelling over to Aubers on Saturday
and Sunday 27th and 28th September. Besides the enjoyable social events, the
Boules championship will have an extra edge as Wadhurst is the current holder
of the cup and the Aubersois will no doubt be seeking revenge.
The Association is planning various evenings of entertainment during the year
especially the Winter Social on Saturday 10th January 2009 in the Youth Centre.
For details about joining the Twinning and its various acitivities, please
contact the Membership Secretary, Janet McFarlan, on 783291 or the Chairman,
John McKenzie on 784342.
WADHURST HISTORY SOCIETY is looking forward to its coach outing to St Mary’s,
Bramber on Saturday September 27, leaving the Greyhound at noon. The cost
of £23 includes a conducted tour of this very special fascinating mediæval
house, followed by a farmhouse tea and a tour of the garden. At the time of
writing, seats do remain. For details and to purchase tickets, contact Rachel
Ring on 01892 783455.
The next talk will be on Thursday 18th September, 7.30 for 8pm in the Commemoration
Hall. There has been a change of programme; for September, Richard Filmer will talk on ‘Traditional
Crafts, Trades and Industries of Kent and Sussex’. The talk on Roman Iron will be given at the October meeting
Besides the interest of the meetings and the wide range of speakers talking
about such diverse subjects every month, a number of the Society’s members
are busy trying to build a picture of Wadhurst over the years as quickly as
possible and certainly before it is too late. People in their 80s now will
have their own memories plus what they heard from their parents and grand-parents
about life in the early 20th Century and even in the 19th Century when Wadhurst
was still a farming community.
Some of the task-groups, having worked hard recently on the period between
1936 and 1946, are exploring more specific interests while others are soon
to start research about Wadhurst in the 1950s and 1960s. That community changed
greatly immediately after the war as we are all very well aware but then there
came the national and international upheavals of the 1960s which must have
had an impact upon the population of Wadhurst. Buildings and land were lost
as development impinged upon Wadhurst; the population changed also as jobs
and businesses disappeared. It is important to track those changes and their
implications on our community so that future generations can understand when,
how and why they happened. Memories can be summarised by chatting to someone,
or you can write them down, or they can be recorded and transcribed.. The
important thing is for us to hear them and what a lot the future generations
will learn and understand.
Please, can YOU help the team create a full, detailed picture of Wadhurst over
the years?
If you would be willing to contribute in any way to this on-going research,
please would you contact David James on 01892 890330 or Heather Woodward on
783212.
WADHURST WOMEN’S INSTITUTE
Members met for their annual garden party on Thursday, 14 August. It was not
a bright sunny day as hoped, but we managed to dodge the showers. As usual
a splendid tea was provided, and the quiz was enjoyed by all. Our thanks
to Joyce Carter for inviting us to use her lovely garden. A reminder: next
month’s meeting is on October 9h, 12 noon for 12.30pm Harvest Lunch. Our
speaker will be Mr G Albon with a talk entitled ‘Iceland – Land of Ice and
Fire’. There will be no trading stall.
WADHURST DRAMATIC CLUB - AUTUMN PRESENTATION
The Club is delighted to announce that its Autumn production, to be staged
at the Commemoration Hall, Wadhurst on 23rd, 24th and 25th October, will
be Ira Levin's intriguing thriller 'Deathtrap'. This play is a witty portrayal
of greed, murder, infidelity, deception and treachery. When renowned playwright
Sidney Bruhl is sent a young playwright's brilliant, unsolicited manuscript
for feedback, he plans a plot to steal it and pass it off as his own. He
and his wife Myra invite the playwright, Clifford Anderson, to their home
to discuss the play. Add to the mixture a Dutch pyschic (Helga Ten Dorp)
and a dull lawyer (Porter Milgrim), and events begin to spiral grotesquely
out of control - and not everyone ends up walking away... 'Deathtrap' is
undoubtedly one of the most exciting and original thrillers to have hit the
world stage for many years and should therefore definitely NOT be missed!
Keep your eyes peeled for Billboards, giving further details, including when
tickets will be going on sale.
COFFEE MORNING : SATURDAY 6TH SEPTEMBER
If you' d like to know more about our award-winning Club (see below) - or perhaps
to offer your services as e.g. an assisatnt set builder, painter, backstage
crew member etc etc for our next presentation, "Deathtrap" - why
not come along to Carillon Cottage, Wadhurst High Street on 6th September (10.30am
to Noon) for a complimentary cup of coffee or tea and a chat with a Club or
Committee Member? We'd love to see you!
NODA MUSICAL ACCOLADE FOR "OLIVER!"
The Club is delighted to announce that it has been awarded a Musical Accolade
Certificate by the National Operatic and Dramatic Association, for its production
of "Oliver!" in January/February this year. John Barnes, our NODA
Regional Representative, will formally present the Certificate to the Director
of "Oliver!", Rosemary Mackinnon and her Production Team, Gill Gordon-Williams,
Jane Spurr and Jeanne Clarke , at the Club's Annual General Meeting to be held
at the Commemoration hall on Wednesday 17th September (8.00pm). Congratulations
to these four, the brilliant cast and everybody else involved with this bumper
production who contributed towards the earning this prestigious award!
CITIZENS ADVICE BUREAU
Crowborough CAB runs a confidential advice service in Carillon Cottage every
Wednesday from 9.00am to 12 noon. No appointment necessary. Just drop in
or call 01892 785658.
WADHURST BOWLS CLUB
Wadhurst Bowls Club will be holding another Boot sale on Sunday 21st of September
at Uplands C. C. Pitches -Cars £8 and Vans £10 - can be booked on 01892 783152..Start
times are sellers at 7.30 am and public 8.30 till 12.00 noon.
THE VILLAGE DIARY
Diary of events: for those who do not use the Internet, the monthly calendar
of events is now on display in the window at Carillon Cottage and next to
The Sandwich Shop on the Wadhurst and District Business Association noticeboard.
The list covers events in Wadhurst, Ticehurst, Frant and the surrounding
area – if your event is not listed, it may be because you have not told the
webmaster, Michael Harte, on 01892 783 292 or through www.wadhurst.info!
This does NOT replace the Village Diary in Carillon Cottage, which should
continue to be used to book future events – and avoid clashes. The Cottage
is open every morning from Monday to Saturday from 9.30am to 12.30pm and
on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday afternoons from 2.00 to 4.00pm.
WADHURST ROTARY CLUB
Meets every Wednesday at 8.00pm in ‘The Greyhound’
The 2008 Wadhurst Scarecrow Festival organised by the Rotary Club was the
best yet. Over the two days an estimated 4,500 people came to admire, marvel
at and be amused at the record 112 scarecrows that had been produced by various
local schools, organisations and individuals.
£6,200 was raised over the two days through the sale of raffle tickets, memorabilia
and contributions from participants at the Farmers Market and Craft Stalls.
Music was provided by The Sussex Stompers, The Wadhurst Brass Band and Bob
Bernard’s Jazz Quintet.
From the money raised donations of £1,500 are being made to Hospice in the
Weald, www.hospiceintheweald.org.uk, Lynn’s Bowel Cancer Campaign, www.bowelcancer.tv
and the Jubilee Sailing Trust, www.jst.org.uk which brings together able-bodied
and physically disabled people in two purpose designed and built tall ships.
Earlier this year the Rotary Club honoured Graham Brewster the village barber
with a life time achievement award for his services to the annual scarecrow
festival. Every year Graham had managed to create stunning scarecrows which
have included ‘The Mad Hatters Tea Party’, ‘Alice in Wonderland’ and Superman
embedded in the wall of the Commemoration Hall. This year was no different
with his masterful creation ‘Tom and Gerries Jazz Band’ being ‘discovered’
by the Trinity Theatre and having been carefully put away will feature in the
Christmas production of ‘Worzel Gummidge’.
In addition to raising money for good causes and a variety of rotary charities
the annual festival, now in its eighth year, has helped to generate a good
community spirit and allows everyone the opportunity of contributing to what
has become a most entertaining and popular local event.
COMPANION DOG SHOW
Sunday 14th September at Old Battenhurst, Battenhurst Road, Stonegate.
Registration from 10.30, judging from 12 noon, refreshments, bar, BBQ & sideshows.
Proceeds to local hospices. Further information 01435-883243.
VOLUNTARY SERVICES OVERSEAS - 50TH ANNIVERSARY
On 23rd July, the Wealden & East Sussex VSO Committee had a much enjoyed
lunch in the garden of Hammerden, Stonegate the home of the Vander family.
There were a good many friends & supporters of VSO present & we enjoyed
a happy & sociable time. Mark Sidey, our volunteer in Ethiopia & sponsored
by the local group, was present. Mark was on two-month leave from his work
where he is involved in training primary school teachers. It must be pretty
hot in Ethiopia at this time of year & I’m sure Mark would enjoy a well-earned
rest. The event raised a total of £530 for VSO funds. We are most grateful
for the hospitality of the Vanders.
WADHURST BRASS BAND - www.wadhurstbrassband.co.uk
HUGE BIRTHDAY CONGRATULATIONS TO KEN RICH
I want to dedicate this Focus article to a man without whom the band would
not be what it is today. We celebrated Ken’s 80th birthday last week at the
last rehearsal before our summer break. Ken has been our Musical Director
since 1998 when he first took over from the retiring Algy Hoare, a hard act
to follow in itself. This followed Ken’s own first attempt to retire as he
had recently left the MD position at Mayfield Band and was looking forward
to taking it easy in our tenor horn section. I say first attempt because
in 2005 he passed the baton on to Paul Gardiner, only to answer our cry for
help two years later when Paul was unable to continue.
Ken has carried on from where Algy left off making Wadhurst Brass Band an organisation
that prides itself on musical quality, a fantastic friendly atmosphere, and
a determination to remain firmly embedded as part of the local community. Ken
we salute you (and don’t even think about trying to retire “again” any time
soon).
Interested in Joining the Band?
If you play an instrument please get in touch. Jenny’s number is below or you
can contact us through our website. Our rehearsals are on Thursday evenings
at 8 o’clock. Everyone is really welcome and if you happen to play cornet
(maybe trumpet) then that is even better.
Learn to Play
Our Training Band meets at 7pm on Thursdays and we would be really pleased
to see you if you fancy giving it a go. They are an enthusiastic bunch of
all ages so don’t be shy. We have instruments for you to use so there really
is no excuse. The new term starts on September 11th an ideal time to begin
a new hobby.
Dates for 2008 – see you there!
Saturday Sept 6th Eastbourne Bandstand
3pm
Saturday Sept 13th Sevenoaks Bandstand 2.30pm
Sunday Sept 14th
Pantiles, Tunbridge Wells 12 noon
Saturday Oct 11th Poppy
Concert, Commemoration Hall 8pm
Friday Nov 21st Concert, Frant Memorial
Hall 8pm
Saturday Dec 6th Christmas
Concert, Commemoration Hall 8pm
Contacts: Jenny Cooper Band Manager
01892 782247
Lydia Fuggle Secretary 01892 782308
Email addresses for Focus are now:
For advertising enquiries: focus_ads@vovi.co.uk
For editorial copy: mlotithorn@tiscali.co.uk